When December 27 dawns this year, a village that has virtually “popped up overnight” will welcome 25,000 people daily and host more than 120,000 visitors across the next six eventful days.
Then as the hordes pack up their campsites and the 2000 or so performers, 2500-strong volunteers and small businesspeople return home from January 2, the site will return to its sleepy countenance for most of the next 365 days.
The 36th Woodford Fold Festival – a world-renowned annual music and cultural festival – is reigniting the energy of festivalgoers on the 200-hectare (500-acre) rural property known as Woodfordia, about 30 minutes’ drive south-west of Beerwah.
This year boasts 1800 unique shows and festival director Amanda Jackes told supporters in an email newsletter this month it would be easier to find a seat in 2023-24.
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Venues including Luna, Bob’s Bar, Coopers Bar, Evergreen, Parlour, The Craic and Bazaar have been increased in size and seating for patrons’ comfort.
Other major improvements have been made to the grounds for this year’s influx of visitors.
In the season-pass campgrounds, many campsites that were overgrown have been reclaimed and recent maintenance has ensured top-notch conditions and improved grassy areas for camping.
The roads have been improved in the overnight campgrounds, too. The shuttle to the precinct runs 24 hours and the overnight ticketing office is open each morning for re-wristbanding for those who want to stay a few days.
Festival streets also will be able to better cope with all kinds of weather.
“We have been able to upgrade many of our pathways so that they are neither dusty nor muddy with the different weather that we sometimes experience at Woodfordia,” Ms Jackes said in the mail-out.
“We are trialling new technology on one of our pathways which we believe will deliver amazing results that will improve everyone’s experience now and into the future.
“It has been so wonderful doing these improvements, knowing the real impact they are going to have on everyone.
“We think you will be truly delighted with what has been achieved.”
Lake Gkula, which officially opened in late 2019 as a chemical-free freshwater lake on site, no doubt will be a popular retreat from the summer heat and place to regroup before the next big workshop, concert or show.
The lake will be open from 6am-6.30pm from December 26-January 1. For those with Christmas Day access, it will be open from 2-6.30pm. And “to make the pack down that bit less stressful”, the lake will be open from 6am-3pm on January 2.
From little things, big things grow … but Ms Jackes said what made Woodfordia so special was everyone being embraced in a village atmosphere and exposed non-stop “to the truth and beauty of art”.
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“We don’t have to look for art – it is everywhere,” she said.
“You might move from a concert to a comedy show to a visual arts workshop, passing children playing in trees, street artists and people enjoying a glass of wine or a beer as they share and learn tunes that have been passed on for literally hundreds of years or people sharing their culture through ceremonial practices that have been passed on for thousands.
“We don’t have to look for a good time, or to work to be changed by the artists we encounter. They are working on us every moment that we are here.
“Each day, we are surrounded by a community that shares Woodfordia’s common interests and values. We think village living is in our DNA. For many of us, the Woodford Folk Festival is our village, even if it lasts only six days.
“It is both familiar and ever-changing. We meet old friends, we meet new friends and we are everywhere bathed in an absolute celebration of the most beautiful arts and artists. We live according to our lore.
“There is an afterglow, where we hope our faith in humanity is restored and refined. Where we feel a renewed commitment to the values we share with the festival and the festival’s community, a renewed and spacious appreciation for the community and for the artists who bring Woodfordia – and our world beyond – to life.
“We can all get to feel an increased possibility for the continuation of village life beyond the six days.
“We are grateful to Woodfordians, past, present and future, for creating a place that feels like home. A place where we, both individually and collectively, can imagine a beautiful future.”
Visit the official website for tickets and more information about this year’s extensive program.
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