Woodford Folk Festival pleads for help as ticket sales hit dire low

A Queensland industry boss is warning ‘ways of discovering new music’ are disappearing forever as the legendary Woodford Folk Festival pleads for help over slow ticket sales threatening the event’s future.

Crowd at Woodford Folk Festival. Pic Martin Ollman

A Queensland industry boss is warning “ways of discovering new music” are disappearing as a legendary festival pleads for help over sluggish ticket sales threatening the event’s future.

Woodford Folk Festival has issued a heartfelt plea for help one month out from the iconic event.

Ticket pre-sales are down 15 per cent across the board one month out from the 37th iteration of the celebration of music, arts and culture.

The festival is turning to its community for support with this “serious predicament”, highlighting the stellar line-up, perfect weather and their efforts to keep tickets affordable.

Festival director Amanda Jackes has put the call out asking music lovers not to wait until the festival to buy their tickets.

Woodford Folk Festival general manager Amanda Jackes.

Pre-sale trends from previous years give a strong indication to whether the event will break even and, at this stage, the outlook was “concerning” for Woodford.

“It will be a struggle for us financially following the event if we don’t meet the box office targets,” Ms Jackes said.

Jinibara traditional owners at a past Woodford Folk Festival fire event.

However, Ms Jackes said the event would go ahead this year, even in the worst case scenario.

“We’ve always been really honest and upfront with our audience and let them know when we’ve got challenges and need help,” she said.

Ms Jackes said after the pandemic, keeping the festival model viable became a risky balancing act as costs surged by up to 40 per cent.

The Woodford team is working to keep attendee costs down, with day tickets only increasing by eight per cent over the past six years.

This year, Woodford will showcase 430 acts, the majority being Australian artists.

One of the lanterns on display at a past Woodford Folk Festival.

It is also presenting its largest line-up of international artists since the Covid-19 pandemic.

These struggles are not isolated, the Sunshine Coast has seen the loss of major events such as the Caloundra Music Festival and Groovin The Moo, while others like Horizon Festival have been postponed.

QMusic chief executive Kris Stewart reiterated the importance of keeping festivals viable.

CEO of QMusic Kris Stewart. Picture: Eyes Wide Open Images

The Queensland’s music industry development association leader said there were several reasons for festivals struggling across the country.

He said costs of touring and presenting events had risen, while financial risks were higher.

“It’s actually a very mature response from Woodford to be visible with the challenges and calling on the community is a great way to respond to it,” Mr Stewart said.

He said this generation needed to add to the incredible history of Australian music and it was “one of the most important parts” of our culture.

The chief executive said going to festivals and small shows was the most affordable way to support live music.

“If we’re not careful a lot of the ways we discover new music will disappear forever,” Mr Stewart said.

Originally published as Woodford Folk Festival pleads for help as ticket sales hit dire low