Australia: Post Malone, Adds, Childish Gambino Postpones, Live Performance Australia Heralds Banner Year

A week after Live Nation announced six arena dates for Post Malone in Australia and New Zealand in April/May, second shows were added for Melbourne’s Rod Laver Arena (May 1), Brisbane Entertainment Centre  (May 5), Sydney’s Qudos Bank Arena (May 8) and Auckland’s Spark Arena  (May 11).

Childish Gambino axed four sold-out arena shows beginning Nov. 8, citing his toe injury. Live Nation stated he was rescheduling. Spilt Milk festival in Canberra will find a replacement headliner but is offering refunds.

Illusive Presents, Frontier Touring and A Day On The Green locked in Nelly, Craig David, All Saints, Amerie and Yo Mafia for the second RNB Vine Days. The summer vineyard dates takes in five stops Feb. 2-13. Last year inaugural run headlined by TLC and Boyz II Men drew 40,000.

MJ Presents has UK singer Rita Ora on her first national run, at four theatres March 1-7.

R&B collective The Internet, already announced for Golden Plains festival, do three headliners March 3-7 for Penny Drop and Chugg Entertainment.

UK buzz band Idles make its Aussie debut for Live Nation with three clubs stops Jan. 24-28.

Gaynor Crawford Presents and Chugg Entertainment bring Rufus Wainwright back for a mix of festival, cub and zoo appearances Feb. 22 and Feb. 28.

Texas psychedelic trio Khryangbin extend three festival appearances with three East Coast clubs in mid-March.

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Australia’s live performance sector broke revenue and attendance figures in 2017, according to Live Performance Australia  (LPA)’s 2017 Ticket Attendance and Revenue Report, released Oct. 25. 

Chief executive Evelyn Richardson said, “Over 23 million Australians attended live events with over $1.88 billion (US$1.33 billion) generated through ticket sales. This represents a 23% growth in attendance and 32% growth in revenue nationally between 2016 and 2017.”

Contemporary music, traditionally the best performer in the sector, had its s best year, with ticket revenue rising to $826 million ($586.1 million) and attendance to 8.5 million.

 

“Circus and physical theatre and contemporary music festivals also recorded strong growth,” Richardson noted. Between 2016 and 2017, the average ticket price in all sectors grew 8% to A$90.59 ($64.28), not quite reaching the highest average ticket price of A$92.16 ($65.40) recorded in 2013.

For the first time since the LPA began its report in 2004, Victoria took the largest share from New South Wales, with growth in major contemporary music concerts, musicals, circus and physical theatre and theatre generating a 45 percent uptick in A$639 million ($453.3million) and a 3.5% rise in attendance to 7.4 million. However all the other states all registered growths. In recent years, state governments have supported the live sector as live events generated economic and job boosts.

Sydney lockouts fate determined

The fate of the controversial Sydney lockouts will be debated in New South Wales (NSW) parliament November 15. A bill was introduced October 25 by the Shooters, Farmers and Fishers Party. Its leader Robert Borsak stated, “These lockouts are killing Sydney. Since the restrictions were brought-in, foot traffic fell by 84% in (the) Kings Cross (precinct) and 176 licensed premises closed.”

With a state election set for early 2019, the NSW government is wary of the topic becoming an election issue. Coincidentally on October 25, four other music clubs in the Sydney CBD were allowed by venue licensing authorities to extend their trading hours 

A charity concert in the country music capital of Tamworth raised $2 million ($1.41 million) for drought-stricken farmers. Put together by veteran Glenn Wheatley, a bill of heavyweights John Farnham, Daryl Braithwaite, Jon Stevens, INXS’s Andrew Farriss, Guy Sebastian, The Veronicas and Adam Harvey played Scully Park Oct. 27  At telethon during  free-to-air Nine Network’s broadcast brought in the high water donations to farmers suffering the worst drought in recent times.

Auckland is expecting a multi-million economic bonanza with a slew of events during the NZ summer. Seven major events at three Auckland Council venues – Mt Smart Stadium, Western Springs and the Civic – are by themselves forecast by Regional Facilities Auckland to generate NZ$21 million ($13.7 million). 

These include concerts by Taylor Swift, Mumford & Sons and local outfit Six60 who are expected to draw 200,000 fans – 40% of whom are journeying to Adelaide for the events. Other draws  including the ITM Auckland Supersprint, Hockey Pro League, Auckland Pride Parade, Splore Music and Arts Festival and Pasifika Festival will bring in a further “tens of millions of dollars” according to Stuart Turner, head of events at Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development (Ateed).