King Street Carnival postponed, again

Newtown’s three-day music and arts festival, the King Street Carnival, is the latest victim of the Omicron outbreak sweeping New South Wales. This marked the second time the festival has faced a delay, with organisers saying on Instagram “we don’t feel that now is the right time to be bringing large crowds into the local community.”

The King Street Carnival outdoor concert series was set to take place place at locations dotted around Newtown, such Sydney Park and Camperdown Memorial Rest Park. The event was first delayed in September, during Sydney’s Delta outbreak. At that time the event was rescheduled for January 14-16, but now just 10 days out from the event it has been delayed again.

“Whilst the decision is a very difficult one for everyone involved, with case numbers spiraling and the ongoing uncertainty around the current outbreak, we as organisers don’t feel that now is the right time to be bringing large crowds into the local community. As all event producers in these times need to be, we are forever optimistic and are currently working with all artists, agents, suppliers and relevant authorities to find a suitable reschedule date that ensures the integrity of the event and quality of the line-up remains intact,” the organises said on their website & social media feeds. “We appreciate how frustrating this is for all of you who have purchased tickets, but we would like to ask for your patience while we find another date and for all ticket holders to hold on to their tickets in the meantime.”

Under the current public health orders outdoor festivals hosting up to 20,000 people are permitted, with NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet encouraging people to “head out and enjoy” the new year.