Australia: Vivid, Katy Perry, Alanis Morissette

Vivid 2017 Sets Attendance Records

Sydney’s light, music and ideas festival Vivid set a new record with 2.33 million people and contributing more than A$143 million ($113.5 million) to the New South Wales state economy.

Figures from the state government’s tourism and events body Destination NSW, released Aug. 23, also noted that a record 38,000 visitors who came to Sydney for the festival also travelled outside the city.

They stayed more than 94,000 nights and injected over $16 million ($12.7 million) into rural and regional local economies.

Vivid ran May 25 to June 16. Minister for Tourism and Major Events Adam Marshall said, “Sydney is not only the gateway to Australia, it is the gateway to rural and regional NSW, and I am thrilled that the whole state is reaping the benefits of the NSW Government’s significant investment in tourism and major events.”

International travel packages were up 48.3 percent from 2016 to 65,491. The largest number of visitors were from China (23,009), followed by the USA and Singapore (5,500 each) and Japan (5,062).

Among international music acts were Fleet FoxesBeth OrtonBon IverLaura MarlingNew OrderRichie Hawtin, AIR, GoldfrappSamphaDianne Reeves, and the Wayne Shorter Quartet.

Among the Australian names with a global presence were The Avalanches and Chet Faker, who now goes by his birth name of Nick Murphy.

Katy Perry’s Witness Tour Expands To NZ 

Katy Perry
Chris Pizzello / Invision / AP
– Katy Perry
Katy Perry does her thing during Wango Tango at StubHub Center in Carson, Calif., May 13.

After 12 dates in Australia, Katy Perry’s Witness Tour will head to New Zealand. TEG-Dainty has her playing Auckland’s  on Aug. 20. Perry has achieved nine chart-topping singles in New Zealand, and her last two shows in Auckland three years ago were instant sellouts.

Paul Dainty, president and CEO of TEG Dainty, promoted Perry’s 2014 Australasian tour and said, “The response we received from the 2014 tour was phenomenal with Katy performing a staggering 25 shows across Australia and New Zealand. Katy is one of the most powerful entertainers in the world and I am delighted to be promoting her 2018 tour.”

‘Voice’ Contestant Sues Nine Network, Military Site

Crissy Ashcroft, a contestant on the 2016 season of “The Voice Australia,” initiated defamation proceedings against free-to-air TV channel Nine Network, which broadcasts the reality TV music show, and the Australia and New Zealand Military Imposters website.

Ashcroft spoke of her experiences as an Afghanistan war veteran who was medically discharged from the Australian army last year.

According to The Australian newspaper, the military website alleged she exaggerated these. Ashcroft had reportedly said she could offer proof of her claims.

Denmark Prince Turned Away From Queensland Bar Over ID

Queensland mandatory ID scans after 10 p.m. for licensed venues in the state’s 12 entertainment precincts snared a high-profile victim, which made headlines through Australia and Europe.

Denmark’s Crown Prince Frederik and his seven-strong security entourage were turned away from Brisbane’s Jade Buddha because he did not have an ID that would scan.

The matter was resolved within an hour, His security contacted Australian Federal Police, who in turn got the go-ahead from the Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation to exempt the future Danish king and his team from having to provide ID.

Venue owners have criticised the A$8,000 ($6,350) machines for not accepting non-Australian IDs, and have been asking the Queensland government to postpone their use for at least 12 months until the software issues are solved.

Although it was an embarrassing incident, it did noy develop into a diplomatic row. Possibly because the Prince is married to an Australian girl, and visits Australia often. However, it did allow Brisbane venue owners to reveal that up to 60 customers were turned away a week.

These have included tourists, American sailors, high-profile international sporting names and European business people in town to do deals. The head of Brisbane Marketing, Brett Fraser, agreed the incident “certainly doesn’t help Brisbane’s international image.”

The National Returns, Demand For Alanis Morissette Rises

The National returns Down Under for three outdoor shows through Handsome Tours. The schedule is the Sydney Opera House Forecourt Feb. 21; Brisbane’s Riverstage Feb. 27 and Melbourne’s Myer Music Bowl March 1.

Demand for Alanis Morissette saw

Chugg Entertainment teamed with

George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic, already announced for the

The new dates, in Sydney and Melbourne, are branded as 50th anniversary shows since the release of Parliament’s 1967 chart-topping summer single “(I Wanna) Testify.”