Lots of rain as wet spell cancels Cairns Festival music highlight

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A late dry season wet spell has dropped large amounts of rain on parts of Far North Queensland and forced the cancellation of a much-anticipated Cairns Festival outdoor concert.

1600 locals had booked to see the Queensland Symphony Orchestra (QSO) perform Superfamous, a show featuring classical music favourites, under the stars at Munro Martin Park on Sunday evening.

But with rain continuing to fall in Cairns for almost two days, Cairns Regional Council, which organised the concert, announced its cancellation on Sunday afternoon.

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 A spokesman for Council said the decision was made in consultation with QSO, and the show could not be moved indoors because no suitable venue is available in Cairns.

“The performance was unable to be moved to another destination for a number of reasons, including ticketing and the logistics of moving equipment from one site to another at short notice,” they said.

“The Cairns Performing Arts Centre (CPAC) has a capacity of 941.

“There were 1600 ticket sold to Superfamous, therefore it would not have been possible to accommodate all ticket holders at CPAC.”

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Superfamous won’t be rescheduled during Cairns Festival, but Council said it’s working with the QSO to bring the show back to Cairns in the future.

Ticketholders will receive refunds to their purchase cards after 15 September. People whose cards expire or are cancelled before then should contact Ticketlink on 1300 855 835.

The wet spell has affected much of eastern Far North Queensland, driven by a trough over the Coral Sea and a strong south-easterly flow.

Falls up to 150mm were recorded in towns south of Cairns and on the southern Atherton Tablelands over the weekend.

In parts of Cairns, 30mm of rain was recorded.

The Bureau of Meteorology said the rainy weather would ease by mid-week but could return next weekend.