Organisers of the Belgian dance festival Tomorrowland have officially submitted an application to hold three summer festivals in 2022, after 2 years of cancelled festivals and financial worries.
First hinted at earlier in the year, the extra weekend would be held one week before the dates already announced, on Friday 15, Saturday 16 and Sunday 17 July 2022. Permission is required from the Antwerp region, as well as the municipalities of Boom and Rumst for the one-off weekend to go ahead, with organisers arguing that it is an “economic necessity to compensate for the cancellations”.
“We really have to do this to cushion the financial hangover,” Tomorrowland spokesperson Debby Wilmsen told Het Laatste Nieuws. “Before Covid, there were no plans to start organising three weekends.”
The festival has also requested additional time for set-up.
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"Over the past two years, we have seen four weekends of the Tomorrowland festival cancelled due to corona," the organization said. “In addition, the sister organization Tomorrowland Winter also had to cancel the past two editions. This exceptional situation has not only had a major impact on us but various freelancers and suppliers also have financial concerns."
A public inquiry on the application will be open until Tuesday 24 October; public objections can be made here.
A decision will be made no later than January 13 next year. As it stands, the proposed weekend is likely to get the backing of Antwerp, Boom and Rumst, who have all indicated that they are not opposed.
The Brussels Times