Wide Open Space Festival cancelled due to financial risks, according to organisers

Wide Open Space Festival organisers have made a ‘needed’ decision to cancel the much-loved event. Here’s why.

Beloved Central Desert music festival, Wide Open Space Festival (WOS), has been cancelled ahead of its return in 2025.

Event directors Jimmy Cocking and Rodney Angelo took to Facebook to make the announcement on December 1, after the event received only half of the budgeted grant funding needed to go ahead.

With the cost of shipping performers and attendees to Central Australia on the rise, it just wasn’t a viable option, Mr Cocking and Mr Angelo said.

Wide Open Space directors Rodney Angelo (left), Jimmy Cocking (far right) and event manager LJ Devlin. Picture: Oliver Eclipse

“The financial risk was too great, and we weren’t in a personal position to accept that risk,” they said.

“Across the country it is becoming increasingly difficult to organise events without external funding to support the program, especially in remote areas.

“We are committed to ensuring artists and crew are paid for their services and without the extra funding, we couldn’t make the budget work.”

Wide Open Space event in 2023. Picture: Oliver Eclipse

Tickets had not yet gone on sale for the event so the cancellation left no one out of pocket.

Fans of the festival expressed support for the “necessary” yet upsetting decision, with one commenter saying the festival was “engaging its chrysalis phase”.

“The decision, I feel, was needed this time as the risks were high,” said another supporter.

“I have so much love and respect for what you guys have done over the years and I’m 100 per cent waiting on the sidelines to help potentially take WOS into its next incarnation in the future.”

Despite the disappointment, WOS may not be gone forever from Central Australia’s calendar of events, with hopes to bring it back in future.

Mr Cocking and Mr Angelo said in their Facebook post, “we don’t know what the future holds for WOS but if it is to continue then it will need energy and guidance from people across the Alice Springs and WOS community”.

“We are keen to work with those who are willing and able to help transition WOS to a new structure that can leverage more sustainable funding. So, if you want to make WOS 2026 happen then get in contact.”