FKP Scorpio has cancelled three more of its summer festivals, saying the spread of the highly transmissible Indian (Delta) variant of the coronavirus in Germany makes going ahead with Highfield, M’era Luna and A Summer’s Tale this year impossible.

Alternative music event M’era Luna, which was scheduled for 7–8 August, and Leipzig rock festival Highfield, which was to have taken place 13–15 August, have both been postponed until 2022, while the relaunch of boutique event A Summer’s Tale, which went on hiatus in 2020, has also been delayed by a year.

Like flagship events Hurricane and Southside, which were called off in March, all tickets for the rescheduled events remain valid. Kraftklub, Casper, Deichkind and Limp Bizkit will headline Highfield 2022, with goth icons Sisters of Mercy newly announced for next year’s M’era Luna.

“The situation is still unpredictable because of the Delta variant, among other things”

At press time, FKP’s autumn events, including November’s Rolling Stone Beach and Metal Hammer Paradise, are still on.

There are currently no nationwide rules for major events in Germany, with the continually changing state-by-state rules making planning a festival a near impossibility at the time of writing.

“As with the Hurricane and Southside, we have done everything in consultation with experts to ensure that our August festivals can take place,” says FKP Scorpio managing director Stephan Thanscheidt. “However, despite falling incidences [of Covid-19], we were ultimately forced to postpone it again, as the situation is still unpredictable because of the Delta variant, among other things.

“For this reason, in order to protect the health of our guests and the teams, we have to wait another year until we can finally meet again in 2022 for an unforgettable festival summer. ”

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German promoter FKP Scorpio has announced Luhmühlen-based festival A Summer’s Tale will not be returning for 2020, as the festival takes a one-year break.

Ticket sales for A Summer’s Tale 2019 matched last year’s record numbers, with 13,000 fans attending the four-day event.

Taking place from 1 to 4 August, acts including Zaz, Suede and Elbow played at the fifth edition of the woodland festival, which also offers outdoor activities, arts, crafts, readings and theatrical performances.

“A Summer’s Tale is a project close to our hearts,” comments FKP Scorpio chief executive Folkert Koopmans. “We have developed the festival very carefully around the current festival site.”

Although FKP Scorpio wishes to keep the current festival site in Luhmühlen, changes to regulatory requirements may mean the event can no longer take place there in its current capacity.

“A Summer’s Tale is a project close to our hearts”

“The long-term answer to this situation is taking a one-year break,” continues Koopmans. “We will use this time to further develop A Summer’s Tale for the benefit of our guests.”

The FKP Scorpio boss stresses that the festival remains “an integral part” of the festival calendar and confirms that the sixth edition will take place from 22 to 25 July 2021.

Since debuting in 2015, A Summer’s Tale has played host to artists including Franz Ferdinand, Patti Smith, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, Amy Macdonald, Damien Rice and PJ Harvey.

FKP Scorpio celebrated a record-breaking weekend earlier this summer, as twin festivals Hurricane/ Southside and two open-air Ed Sheeran shows brought in nearly €50 million from Friday 21 to Sunday 23 June.

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With high temperatures throughout the weekend and a record 13,000 tickets sold, A Summer’s Tale celebrated its fourth year last weekend (1–4 August) in the woods and moors of Luhmühlen, Germany.

This year’s festival featured a host of British-born talent in its multiple-genre-spanning lineup, with sets from Passenger, Madness and Belle and Sebastian. Alongside music, guests enjoyed a series of activities celebrating the arts, including film screenings, workshops and readings, as well as A Summer’s Tale’s popular Poetry Slam, which kicked off Friday’s events.

As has been the case for so many festivals this season, the heatwave currently gripping much of the northern hemisphere posed significant challenges for organisers FKP Scorpio. With the help of awnings and umbrellas throughout the festival site, the team managed to created spaces of shade for festivalgoers looking to escape the sun. Free drinking water points and sprinklers were also on hand to relieve guests and staff.

“It’s fun to see that our artists are not afraid to mingle with the audience.”

With adequate precautions taken, emergency services at the festival reported a quiet weekend. “The audience for this event is very careful in general, and so got along well with the heat,” explains Jan Bauer of the German Red Cross.

“Most treatments were carried out this weekend due to insect bites.”

The illness and subsequent dropping out of Australian signer Kaity Dunstan, known by her stage name Cloves, threatened to put a dampener on the weekend. Organisers acted quickly, enlisting the help of Germany indie rockers Razz to fill the slot.

Despite the minor hiccup, organisers hailed the fourth edition of the festival a success all round. “This festival is very special for all those involved,” says FKP Scorpio’s Stephan Thanscheidt.

“It’s fun to see that our artists are not afraid to mingle with the audience. Those out here on the site experienced an indescribable and relaxed festival atmosphere through and through.”

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Anyone feeling unsafe at Hurricane, Southside, Highfield, M’era Luna, Chiemsee Summer, A Summer’s Tale and Deichbrand festivals this summer need only ask one question – “Which way to Panama?” – to receive assistance, as part of a new anti-harassment scheme being trialled by FKP Scorpio.

The idea, says FKP marketing manager Katja Wittenstein, is to provide festivalgoers with a simple question (“Wo geht’s nach Panama?” in German) that they can ask stewards, staff, police and paramedics in order to request help without having to divulge the nature of the situation.

The asker will then be taken to ‘Panama’ – or any private space away from the crowds – to explain what they have seen or experienced. Everyone who ‘knows the way to Panama’ will be wearing a green and red wristband emblazoned with ‘Panama’.

The introduction of Wo geht’s nach Panama? follows similar initiatives in Australia, where Laneway attendees can call an anonymous hotline to report “disrespectful behaviour”, and the UK, where 60+ AIF members have agreed to implement a zero-tolerance policy to any form of harassment and the provision of confidential welfare to victims of an assault.

Everyone who ‘knows the way to Panama’ will be wearing a green and red wristband emblazoned with the word

There were five sexual assaults at FKP Scorpio’s Bråvalla festival in Norrköping, Sweden, last year.

“When we heard about this concept, which originally came from England, we were enthusiastic about the clear logic and effectiveness,” explains Wittenstein. “Festivals are a lot of fun, but they can also lead to sensory overload: There are people everywhere, it is loud, it is lively, it is colourful…

“An unusual observation or encounter with other people can be felt to be threatening, and both women and men can feel oppressed or harassed.”

A similar scheme is also in use in the German city of Munster, where clubgoers need only ask for “Luisa” to receive help.

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