FESTIVAL NEWS
Tomorrowland, ID&T's Belgian EDM Festival, has sold out of both of its two 60,000 capacity weekend festivals in under one hour. Customers could only apply for tickets to one weekend. The line up will be announced in May.
The Isle of Wight festival will return to its rock roots in 2014 with Kings of Leon, The Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Biffy Clyro confirmed as headliners. Other acts confirmed include Rudimental, Fall Out Boy and Calvin Harris. The 55,000 capacity event had spent £200,000 in infrastructure at Seaclose Park following the severe rain and flooding in 2012 and organiser John Giddings said that the investment had 'paid off' and that the new structure that was put in place for 2013 'worked perfectly'. The first ever event featured The Who, Jimi Hendrix and the Doors and the 2013 edition was headlined by the Stone Roses, Bon Jovi and the Killers.South Africa's Hilltop Live will launch three new festivals in 2014 including XOOXITY - planned as a 30,000 capacity multi day event in Johannesburg - alongside a technology conference called Tech4Africa. Hilltop are also looking to launch a touring night time festival called Afro Nista - alongside Africa's first "black music camping festival". Hilltop already promote the 20,000 capacity Oppikoppi festival and 20,000 capacity RAMfest.
The Greener Festival Award winning Oya Festival in Norway is moving to a new venue in 2014 whilst its normal site undergoes redevelopment. The new site for the 15,000 event will be the Toyenparken and will combine three existing landmarks including the Botanical Gardens and Oslo's outdoor ampitheatre park.Rocking the Daisies 2013 in South Africa has been awarded the HIGHLY COMMENDED Greener Festival Award.The AGF Environmental Assessor was really impressed with the improvements the team have made and spoke very highly of the work that the festival have been doing. And also congratulations to Manchester Markets 2013 which has also been awarded the HIGHLY COMMENDED Greener Festival Award. HIGHLY COMMENDED signifies well managed environmentally aware events which have taken significant steps to reduce waste, reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and engage with the audience.AAA report that the Glastonbury Festival has been granted a new 10-year licence by Mendip District Council. There was no opposition to the licence, which will run up to 2024 and will allow for more staff on the festival site. The number of passes for performers and staff could potentially rise by 25,500 to 63,000 by 2024, however the organiser has confirmed that the number of public tickets available, currently 135,000, will remain the same. Arcade Fire, Dolly Parton, Lily Allen, Disclosure and Blondie are among the acts set to perform at this year’s festival, on 28-30 June. "We recognise how important it is to get this world-famous event right, and the huge impact that it has on the local area and community, both positive and negative,” said chair of the licensing board Jeannette Marsh.
Bucks New University is launching a new course – a BSc in event and sustainability management. Teresa Moore, head of the music and events management department at Bucks New University, told the Guardian: "There's more and more demand for people who've got knowledge in making events sustainable – looking at the social, environmental and economic impact of festivals " adding "Environmental festival management is not just a good way to make a difference, but can be a creatively challenging career path. "Festivals are leading the way in testing out new ideas. One of the big things at the moment is how we can use less plastic – we need to come up with creative and innovative solutions."Watch this free webinar – the future of festivals, organised by Festival Awards and Eventbrite, in association with festivals.ie and Virtual Festivals. The event covered: Findings from the Festival Awards Market Report 2013: What festival goers really want, and how are their needs and expectations are evolving; Findings from the Eventbrite Social Commerce Report: How social media is changing the way festival organiser are selling tickets; The key trends that are shaping the festival scene: from the ‘hybridisation’ of festivals, to sustainability, mobile technology and more. http://www.festivalinsights.com/2014/02/watch-free-webinar-future-festivals/?utm_source=Sign-Up.to&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=16921-216411-Insights+7.3.14