However, finances for the third Festival of Colour were in good shape, according to the trust's financial reports released at yesterday's annual meeting.
The trustees were excited about next year's programme bringing four "world premieres" to the district from April 28-May 3.
The festival's budget is about $800,000, the trust already has $111,158 in accumulated funds and has received grants totalling $200,000 from Creative New Zealand, Central Lakes Trust, the Community Trust of Otago and the Sargood Trust.
Infinity Ltd and Aurora Energy have signed up as gold sponsors.
Mr Beattie said festivals had begun to notice corporate sponsors, philanthropic organisations and gaming trusts were reducing the amount of funds available to support events.
Other festivals had responded by going to their city or district council and advocating for a greater level of spending in downturn periods, he said.
"We haven't done that with the Queenstown Lakes District Council or the Central Otago District Council but we may just yet do that," he said.
In the meantime, the trust has signed 137 of its target of 200 patrons.
"It is important to have been able to achieve that [patronage] in slightly more challenging economic times.
"This is because it gives us untagged funding, which gives [the festival director] discretion in his programme.
Sponsors' money is usually tagged to something. And it also allows us to keep our ticket prices down," Mr Beattie said.
Ticket prices have not been released.
The trust was to consider them privately yesterday, and Mr Beattie said there would be a "robust argument" for keeping them at the same level as the previous two shows to get the widest possible sales.
Tickets last year ranged from $5 for a lunchtime concert in the Crystal Palace to $28 for a seat at a production in the Lake Wanaka Centre.
Events at smaller community halls around the district also cost $28.
There were some free events, such as street theatre, an art trail and gallery exhibitions.
The international component of the festival would be coming from Australia this year and a new part of the programme was "Aspiring Conversations", fea-turing artists, writers and contributors, festival director Philip Tremewan said.
The world premieres are by New Zealanders who have all been associated with previous Wanaka arts festivals.
The script of Le Sud, by comedy playwright Dave Armstrong, has had a reading in front of an appreciative Auckland audience and is now being worked into a theatre production for Wanaka and Clyde.
The play would present South Islanders as if colonised by the French, "a leisured, wealthy, wineloving country", while the North Island would be an overcrowded British colony "filled with Tuhoe insurrectionists" and losing the rugby.
"Fifty Aucklanders fell out of their chairs laughing, so it was quite nice to learn North Islanders liked it that much because we thought only South Islanders would like the work," Mr Tremewan said.
Jazz pianist Mike Nock has composed Southern Suite for classical pianists Michael Houstoun and Deirdre Irons, while dancer Raewyn Hill will present a new dance work Finders Keepers, coming from her present Hong Kong residency.
The fourth premiere is a special show being produced by Flat Out Productions of Lake Hawea in collaboration with Auckland Theatre Company performer Stuart Devenie.
The programme will tour to Lake Hawea, Luggate, Tarras, Bannockburn, Arrowtown, Glenorchy and Clyde.
There would also be a schools component.
