28 November 2017
Media: Rotorua Daily Post
Topic: Mudtopia festival
Inquiry
Questions for Rotorua Lakes Council
For Council:
- There have been some cool events, like the night market dunk tank, how many tickets have council given away to the event?
- Will there be a few more chances for people to win?
- What has the reaction been like from people about the festival?
- Are the ticket sales as high as council was hoping for?
- How much money has council spent on the festival?
- Where did that money come from? Which budgets?
For the mayor:
- Are you looking forward to Mudtopia?
- How do you feel with it only two days out?
- Do you think people have got behind it the way you hoped?
For event organisers, Event Engine:
- Is everything ready to go for the weekend?
- How much set up has it taken?
- How are organisers feeling?
- How have ticket sales for the event gone?
- We have seen hundreds of tickets being given away, is this an indication you're trying to boost the attendance?
Response
From event organisers:
- Is everything ready to go for the weekend?
Not just yet! We are mid-way through the pack in for the Festival, on track with our schedule, and it's exciting to see everything taking shape.
- How much set up has it taken?
We are basically transforming the racecourse into a mud and music wonderland so it takes a fair few days. Pack in started on Monday and goes all the way through to the finishing touches first thing on Friday morning.
- How are organisers feeling?
Everyone is really looking forward to seeing just how much fun we know Festival visitors will have - it's going to be an unforgettable and totally unique event. The great thing about Mudtopia is that you can choose from so many different activities and experiences. From really immersive experiences like the Mud Arena, Mud Run, Mud Games zone with challenges like the dunk tank, horizontal mud bungy, gumboot throwing, jousting and inflatable obstacles to totally rejuvenating mud-therapy treatments in the Mud Day Spa or just relaxing with live music, local performers, great food and drinks, it's set to be a great event for the whole family to enjoy.
- How have ticket sales for the event gone?
It's a really busy summer this year with so many events and festivals for people to choose from, so we have found ticket sales slower than expected but we are really looking forward to putting on a great Festival this weekend and would love to see plenty of people come along and buy their tickets at the gate.
- We have seen hundreds of tickets being given away, is this an indication you're trying to boost the attendance?
It has always been part of the marketing and promotional strategy to give as many Rotorua locals as possible the opportunity to come along and experience the Mudtopia Festival for themselves, in particular the mud activities which is a true celebration of the region's geothermal treasures, so we have given away Mud Pass tickets to make that a reality for locals.
A special new promotion is launching tomorrow where Mudtopia R18 Concert tickets are now available with a FREE Mud Pass for $69.
From Rotorua Lakes Council:
Please refer questions around ticket sales, promos and giveaways and reaction from people about the festival to the event organisers/promoters (we understand you have already asked them a number of questions).
From Arts and Culture Director Stewart Brown:
This festival is a totally new concept so it's been hard to predict exactly what the response would be. We obviously want it to be a success and to put on a great experience and we hope locals will take the opportunity to get behind the event. It's not too late if people haven't decided yet - there will be ticket sales at the gate.
The financials will be reported to Council once we've wrapped everything up.
From Mayor Steve Chadwick:
As a council we decided this event had merit and potential economic benefit for Rotorua so we certainly hope it will be a success. I'll be there for a while on Saturday to check it out and I look forward to seeing how it all looks. Mudtopia is a new concept here but we hope locals, and others, will support it, go along to see it for themselves and enjoy the activities and entertainment.
Background information:
Council agreed to commit to and invest in the event in December 2015 following extensive feasibility work and committed to spending up to $500,000 from events budgets, subject to government investment.
In June 2016 the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) announced a $1.5 million investment over five years. A grant was also received from NZCT.
The event is owned by Rotorua Lakes Council with a specialist event management company appointed to deliver the event.
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Media: Newshub
Topic: Mudtopia festival
Inquiry
Reporter called to ask about Mudtopia this weekend and also asked what happened to the Boryeong mud agreement.
Response
The reporter was directed to Applause Communications to organise media access to the festival.
A link to the August 2017 announcement about the cancellation of the mud powder import was also supplied.