Summer is on the horizon, and that means the Toronto Fringe Festival is too. The annual event’s 38th edition spans 13 days and features 123 shows in 27 venues across the city.
Ontario’s largest performance festival will showcase eight shows inspired by Shakespeare, five productions from the Caribbean diaspora, three magic shows, two plays about medical assistance in dying, and a comedy show performed entirely in Mandarin, among many other offerings. Per tradition, the programming is selected by lottery, with a handful of exceptions.
New venues this year include Sweet Action Theatre and Young People’s Theatre, where the festival’s annual KidsFest will take place. This is also the second consecutive Fringe during which Soulpepper Theatre’s Distillery District home will serve as the festival hub, hosting 13 days of free community programming as well as four venues.
In the autumn, the same building will house the inaugural Fringe Encore Series, a curated selection of exceptional productions from the summer, co-presented by Toronto Fringe, Soulpepper Theatre, Obsidian Theatre, and Bad Hats Theatre. This follows TO Live’s Best of Fringe series, running from July 17 to 19 at the Jane Mallett Theatre in the St. Lawrence Centre for the Performing Arts.
See you out there, folks!
The 2026 Toronto Fringe Festival runs from June 30 to July 12. Tickets are now on sale.
Toronto Fringe is an Intermission partner. Learn more about Intermission’s partnership model here.
WRITTEN BY
Liam Donovan
Liam is Intermission’s senior editor. He lives in Toronto. His Substack newsletter is available at loamdonovan.substack.com.
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