Million dollar siren, Amanda Palmer, has announced that she has decided to cancel her 2013 touring commitments in entirety except for her New Years gig in New York City.

The shock announcement comes after Palmer decided she’d rather stay by the side of her best friend and life-long mentor Anthony Martignetti, who has been diagnosed with cancer recently and will be undergoing twelve weeks of treatment.

“This is really, really hard for me to tell you. I feel like I’m letting a lot of people down,” wrote Palmer on her blog. “If you know me, you’ll know that in 13 years of touring, I’ve almost never canceled a single engagement. It’s not my style.”

“I take my professional commitments really seriously. even if I’m sick, I play. But I also take my friendships really seriously. This situation calls for no other solution. My best friend is really sick and his future is uncertain. So I am going to stay with him while he goes through this.”

“I know it’s going to affect so many people – my band, my crew, all of you, especially those of you who have already made travel plans, booked hotels, bought plane tickets. All I can do is ask for your forgiveness and understanding, and ask you to wait. I will come.”

“This was an agonizing decision to make, but it was also, an easy decision, if you know what I mean. He’s my best friend.”

The former Dresden Doll singer Amanda Palmer astounded the music industry by racking up over 1.1 million dollars in crowdfunding donations as she appealed to fans to assist with the creation of her first “BIG, LEGIT” album.

In a campaign which aimed at raising USD $100,000, fans of the alternative musician handed over USD $1,192,793, completely blowing her original request out of the water, and this tour was to be the first taste for Australian audiences of the new material.

According to Palmer, her team and Australian promoters Frontier Touring are working hard to reschedule her January / February Australian tour for late 2013. Frontier are currently exploring options for a tour around September or October 2013.

If you have purchased tickets to these shows, your tickets will still be valid for the rescheduled dates, so you can keep your tickets and won’t have to purchase new ones.

If, however, you would like a refund before new tour info is announced, please contact your relevant ticketing agency directly:

• MELBOURNE – Ticketmaster 136 100
• SYDNEY & BRISBANE – Ticketek 132 849
• PERTH – Show Ticketing (08) 9370 5888 or [email protected]
• ADELAIDE – Venue*Tix (08) 8225 8888 or [email protected]
• BYRON BAY – Oztix 1300 762 545 or [email protected].
• WELLINGTON – Ticketmaster 0800 111 999 or [email protected]
• AUCKLAND – Q Theatre (09) 309 9771 or [email protected]

Palmer will also no longer be appearing at the Mona Foma Festival in Tasmania. “I’m so bummed to be missing it,” says Palmer. “It’s one of the things I was looking forward to most of all.”

Tickets to Mona Foma will be fully refundable. To claim a refund, please call or visit the Theatre Royal Box Office. they’re open 9am–5pm (Mon to Fri) and are located here, at 29 Campbell St in Hobart. Their number is 03 6233 2299 (or freecall outside Hobart 1800 650 277).

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