First Scottish edition of WOMAD cancelled due to low ticket sales
A planned Scottish edition of the WOMAD festival has been cancelled due to lower than expected ticket sales.
The event was due to take place in Glasgow’s Kelvingrove Park next month, and was the result of a partnership between the WOMAD company, Celtic Connections and Glasgow Life, a charity that organises cultural and sporting events in the Scottish city.
Organisers say the decision to cancel was “difficult” and “deeply disappointing”, however, “while audience response to the programme and the vision for the event was extremely positive, ticket sales did not reach the level required to deliver the festival sustainably in its inaugural year”.
The main WOMAD festival in England is returning this summer after taking a year off, and in a new location, Neston Park in Wiltshire. Since being co-founded by Peter Gabriel back at the start of the 1980s, editions of WOMAD – which presents music and culture from all over the world – have been staged in many different countries. But this would have been the first WOMAD festival in Scotland.
When announcing the Scottish edition last December, organisers said it would be a celebration of “cultural expression from around the globe”, with “an eclectic line-up of high-profile and emerging artists performing a vast range of global music including pop, dance, folk, jazz and hip hop and beyond across three stages”.
In their cancellation statement, organisers say the WOMAD company and its Scottish partners had “worked together to bring the world-renowned festival to Scotland for the first time”. But it’s no secret that the economics of staging a music festival can be very tricky and, organisers add, the cancellation “reflects the challenge of launching a new large-scale event in a competitive and crowded market at this time”.
They then conclude, “we know this news will be hugely disappointing, particularly for those who have already purchased tickets, and we sincerely apologise for that. We would also like to thank the many artists, contractors, suppliers, partners and stakeholders who have supported plans for the event over recent months”.
