Together apart: Second home leisure communities in New Zealand

Abstract

The role of events and festivals in bolstering both the economies and the spirits of small rural communities facing hard times is an important but emergent area of research (see, for example, Davies, 2015; Gibson & Connell, 2015). However, the life cycles of such events and festivals and the attendant role of power in these life cycles is less well understood, particularly when a festival ceases to exist. This chapter examines the evolution of a local community food festival in Southeast Queensland, Australia, and investigates the changing nature of power relations in its life and (untimely) death. The chapter firstly provides a brief discussion of the nature of power and its application to tourism and event development. This is followed by a contextual section that examines the role of power in the birth of the Real Food Festival. Two different forms of power ('power to' and 'power over') and their influence during the remainder of the life course of the festival are then considered.