Performing arts festival is axed for second year

A PERFORMING arts festival that attracts 15,000 people has been cancelled for the second year running due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Shambala is staged in the grounds of Kelmarsh Hall, near Market Harborough.

Organisers said 15,000 people were due to attend the sell-out event over the August Bank Holiday weekend.

In a statement, organiser Kambe Events said the team were heartbroken to announce the event’s postponement for another year, adding: “We would reiterate that without a government-backed insurance scheme, independent festivals such as ourselves are put in an incredibly tricky position.

“Even with the amazing support shown from our audience over the last year and the Cultural Recovery Fund grant we received, without such a government-supported insurance scheme, a last-minute cancellation would risk the very future of Shambala. That’s not a gamble we are willing, or should have, to take.

“Whilst we very much hope that the various targets in the roadmap are met and restrictions are lifted in mid-June, there’s still a very real possibility that social distancing measures will still be in place.

“With this in mind, we’ve been engaged in a somewhat nightmarish game of Tetris over the past few months trying to envisage how Shambala could work. The short answer is, it couldn’t.”

Full refunds are being given and organisers say they are now planning three smaller weekend events over the summer.