Adelaide pulls the pin on a festival that gave many artists a launching pad

The Adelaide Festival Centre has announced that the OzAsia Festival will be cancelled after its 20th anniversary in 2026. The festival, which promoted Asian and Asian Australian arts, music, and food, had a dedicated following of over 200,000 attendees in recent years.

Former OzAsia Festival community engagement coordinator Jessica Zeng expressed shock and disappointment at the decision, stating that she never guessed the festival would be cancelled. Zeng described the festival as a 'hotbed for meaningful artist collaboration, cultural edutainment, and a familiar gathering place'.

The festival's cancellation has been met with a sense of cynicism about the future of the arts and festival landscape. Zeng described the decision as 'unceremonious' and 'short sighted', highlighting that there was 'so much more to the festival than the market'.

The OzAsia Festival was expected to shift to a year-round programming format from 2027, with an annual presence of The Lucky Dumpling Market. However, the cancellation of the festival has left many in the community feeling disappointed and uncertain about the future.

The festival had a significant impact on the community, with many artists, vendors, and audiences describing it as a 'homecoming'. Zeng recalled 'beautiful moments' and 'memories that are bittersweet with the knowledge of OzAsia's end'.