Pitch Music & Arts Festival Headliner Charlotte de Witte Cancels Australian Appearances

de Witte cited the "recent escalation of conflict and drone attacks" in the Middle East, one of the most common travel corridors and stopover locations from Europe to Australia.

Charlotte de Witte

Both Belgian DJ Charlotte de Witte and German producer Sedef Adasï have cancelled their forthcoming trips to Australia, which include performances at this year’s Pitch Music & Arts Festival, citing the “recent escalation of conflict and drone attacks” in the Middle East.

On Saturday (28 February), the United States and Israel conducted coordinated military strikes against multiple targets in the Islamic Republic of Iran, hitting the capital city of Tehran.

In response, Iran struck US military bases in Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Jordan. The conflict continues, with drones intercepted in Qatar and Abu Dhabi and airports evacuated over the last few days.

Middle Eastern airports such as Doha’s Hamad International Airport and Abu Dhabi’s Zayed International Airport, with operators such as Qatar Airways and Emirates, are among the most common travel corridors and stopover locations from Europe to Australia.

As the airspaces for those airports remain temporarily closed and airlines are presently not operating, it’s become an even costlier affair for artists and their crews to re-book flights with already packed airlines. And, as de Witte notes, rerouting flights that are meant to stop in the Middle East doesn’t come without risk.

This year’s Pitch Music & Arts Festival is taking place at the Grampian Plains beneath Gariwerd from Friday, 6 March, to Tuesday, 10 March. In addition to her headline appearance at the festival, de Witte was set to host an epic one-off headline show at Sydney’s Hordern Pavilion this Friday (6 March).

In a statement posted on social media, de Witte said her team is working to reschedule the Sydney show and to secure an “alternative show” for fans in Melbourne before the end of the year.

“It is with a heavy heart that I have to cancel my upcoming shows in Australia this weekend,” de Witte wrote.

She continued, “Due to the recent escalation of conflict and drone attacks in the Middle East, it is not possible to risk free reroute travel for myself and my crew. This decision was not taken lightly.

“We are working on rescheduling the Sydney show and finding an alternative show for Melbourne before the end of the year. All ticket holders will be contacted directly by the event organisers with information regarding refunds or new dates.

“I am truly sorry for the disappointment and was very much looking forward to being with you. With love, Charlotte.”

Adasï has not yet issued a statement of her own, though Pitch organisers issuers a statement outlining the current situation, and confirming Adasï’s withdrawal from the event.

“27 artists on this year's programme were scheduled to travel via stopovers through the Middle East with their journeys being directly affected,” they wrote via their Instagram Stories. “We've been working around the clock with artist teams to reroute flights and are grateful that 25 of those artists have now been successfully rerouted and remain on their way to Pitch.

“Sadly Charlotte de Witte and Sedef Adasi are no longer able to join us this year.

“We know many of you were looking forward to these performances, as were we,” organisers added. “We ask for your understanding, both for the artists affected and for the broader human situation unfolding globally. It's a reminder of how fortunate we are to be celebrating music & arts this weekend.”

Organisers also asked attendees to bear with them as they provided programme updates over the next 24 hours, with “a few additions to the lineup” also set to be shared in due course.Punters attending this year’s Pitch Music & Arts Festival can find a “party safe” guide and full programme and schedule below.