The 2018 Adelaide Festival, which has gone from strength to strength in recent years, has generated an estimated gross expenditure of $76.1 million for South Australia. An increase of nine percent on 2017’s figure, it is among other promising statistics included in a newly released Economic Assessment Report commissioned by the Festival.

Rachel Healy and Neil Armfield. Photo: supplied

The Report also identified that a staggering 19,825 visitors of the annual arts festival last year were interstate or overseas travellers, representing a 44 percent increase on the previous year. Visitor bed nights also rose to 138,021, a 50 percent increase on 2017. Meanwhile, Brett Dean’s much acclaimed opera Hamlet attracted 39 percent of its audience from interstate.

The Report also found that total new expenditure in SA in relation to the Festival came in at $18 million, while newly created incomes on the Gross State Product is estimated at $21 million, which includes the creation of the equivalent of 220 full-time jobs.

“The Adelaide Festival is an iconic Australian arts festival, and I’m delighted that the 2018 event has been a successful one – I certainly look forward to seeing it prosper once again...