Festival’s future outlined in report

A REPORT commissioned by Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County
Council has recommended that it should defer relaunching the popular Festival
of World Cultures and hold a smaller festival instead.

The council organised and ran the festival in Dun
Laoghaire for 10 years until it decided to cancel this year’s show as the event
went over budget by

?¬568,000 in 2010.

The local authority’s projected budget for the event
last year came to

?¬768,000, but the final bill came to

?¬1,336,800.

The massive cost overrun was largely attributed to the
council’s efforts to secure internationally renowned music acts, as well as
hiring extra security to counter anti-social behaviour.

The event attracted as many as 250,000 visitors over
the three day schedule in 2009 and 2010.

In July this year the council commissioned FMG
Management, who specialise in advising on event production and management, to
review the possibility of relaunching the event in light of the prevailing
economic climate.

The company was also asked to outline a more

“robust
and sustainable

? model for the festival.

In its report FMG said the optimum model for the
revival and long-term survival of the festival was to establish a company,
fully owned by the council, to run the festival. It would have its own board of
management and seek advice from external experts.

“This company would employ a minimum core staff and
outsource programming, production and marketing/pr,

? the report said.

The report suggested that in order to re-establish a

“flagship festival of reasonable scale and impact

?, the event in its first year
would require a turnover in the region of

?¬500,000 and require a net investment
of

?¬250,000 from the local authority.

This year the council’s initiative to run a higher
number of smaller festivals around the county was largely hailed as a success.
Some councillors in the Dundrum area, however, were critical of the fact that
the vast majority of the events were held in the Dun Laoghaire catchment area
of the county.

The council estimates that around 122,000 people
attended 10 events, including the DLR Mountains to the Sea Book Festival and
the Dublin Bay Taste and Music Festival, over a six week period at a cost to
the council of

?¬366,000.

In the six weeks following August 1, the council also
held 30 event days at various locations around the county.

The FMG report further recommended that any relaunch
of the Festival of World Cultures should be put on hold. Instead, as an interim
measure for two to three years, it suggests the council should add a festival
with a multi-cultural theme to the successful DLR

‘Summer is a Festival’ season
initiated this year.

Cllr Victor Boyhan (Ind) has called on the council to
relaunch the festival as soon as possible.

He said he largely agreed with the findings of the
report and urged the council to prepare the foundations for a new festival and
to relaunch the event when it was economically feasible to do so.

“We need to be realistic considering the current
economic environment,

? he said.

“My view is keep it in the long-term. We know that it
went over budget the last few years. When it was on, crazy money was spent on
it – well in excess of

?¬1 million – we can never let that happen again.

“It got too big. It lost the run of itself. The costs
were just not managed. There is a realisation that we have to pull it back and
build firm foundations for a new festival.

“But I wouldn’t be in favour of scrapping it. I think
that maybe we rely too much on private venues that cost a lot of money. We
should identify our own public venues because that will cut costs.

?