Dublin Fringe Festival 2025 Karim Cover

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RADICAL ART IS ONLY MADE WITH YOUR SUPPORT

Every year, 5,000+ artists take the stage with our support. With your support, they could go even further.

Dublin Fringe Festival is a registered charity supporting Ireland’s emerging artists year-round. Directly invest in the future of Ireland’s creative talent today. Registered charity number: 20037772.

Welcome to Dublin Fringe Festival where your desires are in wild supply.

This year, we asked: what do we need? The answer: joy in abundance. Community in communion. Craic in overload. Rest, revolution and permission to play.

In 2025, we’re bringing you a festival overrun with pathways to pleasure and questions of communal care. Be prepared for cures, catalysts and catharsis.

These exceptional artists delight and disrupt. They weave worlds into existence, lay claim to a changing Ireland, repurpose tradition, shape truths from overload and invite the future to the table. They’re giving you bold laughs, swift moves, sharp insights, and dancefloors galore.

For 16 essential days and nights, Dublin Fringe Festival is throwing the boldest party of the year, with work that defies expectations, cherishes complexity and takes over the city.

Want to be part of what’s next? We saved you a spot.

BEE SPARKSFESTIVAL DIRECTOR

NEED HELP?

Email boxoffice@fringefest.com or call us on 1800 374 643

THE NEED-TO-KNOW

Age guidance: Due to mature themes, strong language and nudity, the content of many Dublin Fringe Festival shows may not be viewed as suitable for all audiences. You will find shows suitable for ages 0-18 on pages 101-106 in Young Radicals.

Content warnings: These are noted on each show page and in more detail at fringefest.com

Access info: If you need wheelchair access or other accommodations, contact us at the time of booking. Full venue access info:

fringefest.com/venues Group bookings: Discounts available for groups of 10+. Concessions offered for students, senior citizens & the unwaged.

Join our crew: Volunteer with Dublin Fringe Festival! For behind-the-scenes experience and a brilliant couple of weeks, contact: volunteers@fringefest.com

The Small Print Arrive 15 mins early for your event. No refunds unless the event is cancelled. A €2 transaction fee applies to all tickets (included in the price).

Everything listed was correct at the time of print. Life changes—Fringe does too.

ACCESS

We want everyone to feel welcome at Dublin Fringe Festival. Here’s how we’re making the festival easier to get to, get into, and get the most out of.

IRISH SIGN LANGUAGE

Look for the ISL symbol on show pages throughout the brochure, or on the Day-by-Day pages 116 to 121. Shows with ISL interpretation: Anonn | The Other Side (pg 74), Good With Faces (pg 72), Pea Dinneen: Raising Her Voice (pg 13), Roots in Every Room (pg 43), and Variations for Two Disabled Bodies (pg 18).

AUDIO DESCRIPTION

Shows are marked with the AD symbol. Check show pages and Dayby-Day pages 115 to 122. Shows with Audio Description: Change (pg 54), also includes touch tour.

RELAXED PERFORMANCES

RP

Shows are marked with the relaxed symbol. Check show pages and Day-by-Day pages 116 to 121. Shows with Relaxed Performances: Variations for Two Disabled Bodies (pg 18).

WHEELCHAIR ACCESSIBLE

Flip to page 110 for venue accessibility information where you can see which venues are fully and partially wheelchair accessible.

Need more detail? Head to fringefest.com/venues

ACCESSIBILITY SUPPORT

If you or someone in your group needs access support - like a wheelchair space - let box office know when booking. The earlier we know what you need, the better we can help.

DUBLIN FRINGE FESTIVAL IS MORE THAN A FESTIVAL

WE’RE A YEAR-ROUND ARTIST SUPPORT ORGANISATION.

We run a packed programme of residencies, bursaries, workshops, work-in-progress nights, and mentorships to help artists grow, dream bigger, and take artistic risks.

Our Dublin Fringe Festival Studios offer free and subsidised space to make work — from rehearsals to quiet writing time.

We’re here for the wild ideas, the risky drafts, and the bold breakthroughs.

Artists, Dublin Fringe Festival is here for you.

IN 2024…

70+ artists received bursaries, awards & residencies

300+ scripts read 400+ artists attended artist support events

500+ big chats about big ideas

800+ squeals at artists’ successes

900+ artist meetings

GET IN TOUCH

1500+ cups of tea

2000+ ambitions realised 3,900+ free studio hours gifted 4,500+ artists developed work in our Studios

Éire Defining Thrilling rewrite the

works that cannon

and show us the way forward.

THISISPOPBABY presents

Octopus Children

FELISPEAKS

My Nigeria happened in Longford town.

Written by FELISPEAKS, Octopus Children follows Young Felicia coming of age as a queer, ‘Black Irish midlands culchie’ grappling with their identity, led by a wise guide: The Octopus. Part poetic landscape, part gig theatre, Octopus Children marries FELISPEAKS’ spellbinding spoken word with choreography, music, and stunning visual design.

Directed by Oonagh Murphy, this powerful, premiere invites everyone into the Black and Irish experience, and encourages anyone on the fringes to step forward unapologetically, without retreating their tentacles.

Performances 5 Sept, 21:00 (preview)

6 - 7 Sept, 21:00

11 - 14 Sept, 18:15

12 & 14 Sept, 13:00

Prices €20 (full), €18 (conc.), €16 (preview)

Venue Project Arts Centre -

Space Upstairs

Duration 80 mins

Funded by The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon, Dublin City Council and co-commissioned by THISISPOPBABY and Droichead Arts Centre.

Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Pato Cassinoni & Niall Sweeney

ALIENS

CURIOUS INDUSTRIES

I didn’t like it here at first. I didn’t like anything.

Join a real-life mother and daughter on a road trip from Donegal to southern Italy, as they weave their personal stories with those of Italian immigrants in Northern Ireland and present-day migrants, activists, and strangers met along the way.

Blending performance, video, and live music, this show invites you to explore what it means to live between countries, generations, and identities - a meditation on inheritance, migration, and those who live in between: the aliens.

Performances 8 Sept, 20:45 (preview)

9 - 10 Sept, 18:15

Prices €18 (full), €16 (conc.), €14 (preview)

Venue Smock Alley Theatre - 1662

Duration 90 mins

Funded by Autonomous Region of Valle d’Aosta (Italy) & Arts Council Northern Ireland. Supported by Pan Pan Platform at Dublin Fringe Festival.

Please note, contains reference to mental health and depression. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image John McIlduff

Presented by Pea Dinneen & Once Off Productions

Pea Dinneen: Raising Her Voice

PEA DINNEEN

A trans fantasia

Devised in collaboration with Ronan Phelan and Paul Prior.

How do you raise a voice? How do you get a whole country to hear it?

Well, with 90s pop bangers adapted to fit a playful, subversive personal narrative about transgender liberation in the face of an uncaring system –OBVIOUSLY.

Join niche cabaret legend Pea Dinneen and her fabulous band for this world premiere.

This is as much a play about three decades in the history of a nation as it is a vast ongoing vanity project from a disenfranchised millennial hag.

Image Hazel Coonagh

Performances 6 Sept, 18:15 (preview)

7 Sept, 18:15

11 - 14 Sept, 21:00

13 Sept, 13:00

ISL Interpreted Performance

12 Sept, 21:00

Prices €20 (full), €18 (conc.), €16 (preview)

Venue Project Arts CentreSpace Upstairs

Duration 90 mins

Supported by Axis Ballymun, Pavilion Theatre, Irish Theatre Institute, Fishamble’s New Play Clinic & FRINGE LAB. Co-commissioned by Project Arts Centre & Draíocht Blanchardstown. Developed with the assistance of The Abbey Theatre Amharclann Na Mainistreach. Funded by DLR County Council & the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon.

Please note, contains reference to mental health and depression. This event features excessive loud noise/music. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

OISÍN

A MODERN RETELLING OF THE LEGEND OF OISÍN IN TÍR NA NÓG

BLUE NIALL & ST. DIABHAL

Did the ancestors leave us ancient wisdom or just generational trauma and a hangover?

Join Irish rapper and producer Blue Niall and visual artist St. Diabhal for this genre-bending show.

Blending hip-hop, Irish traditional music, and Celtic illustrations, it retells the legend of Tír na nÓg through the eyes of a returning emigrant. Oisín ghosted Ireland, now Ireland is ghosting him. Haunted by memory and driven by hope, this performance explores belonging, exile, and the search for meaning in a collapsing world.

Part myth, part meme, part meltdown –this is ancient and urgent.

Performance 19 Sept, 19:00 til late (doors 18:30)

Prices €18 (full), €16 (conc.)

Venue The Racket Space

Supported by the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon and Dublin Fringe Festival.

Please note, contains reference to mental health and depression. This event features excessive loud noise/ music, smoke machines, and strobe lighting.

Venue is not wheelchair accessible.

Image Blue Niall & St. Diabhal

ISL Deaf Translations Project

LIANNE QUIGLEY & ISL TEAM INTERPRETING

This year’s Dublin Fringe Festival features the third iteration of an exciting commission, led by artist and Deaf interpreter Lianne Quigley. Aiming to bridge the gap between the stage and Deaf audiences, Lianne will lead a specialised team of Deaf and hearing interpreters, offering an enriched and more inclusive Dublin Fringe Festival for all through interpreted performances of four productions.

A celebration of Irish Sign Language (ISL) and a vital step towards recognising the cultural heritage of the Irish Deaf Community, this project facilitates and promotes team-interpreting in the theatre context. It goes beyond the familiar model of a ‘hearing interpreter signing to a Deaf audience’ and brings Deaf culture, creativity, and representation to the fore.

The continuation of this pioneering collaboration between Dublin Fringe Festival and Lianne Quigley marks another important step towards a more accessible and inclusive artistic landscape in Ireland.

Anonn | The Other Side (p. 74)

Scaoilte Theatre

14 Sept, 21:00

€16 (full), €14 (conc.)

Good With Faces (p. 72)

Oisín Kearney

13 Sept, 15:45

€18 (full), €16 (conc.)

Pea Dinneen: Raising Her Voice (p. 13)

Pea Dinneen

12 Sept, 21:00

€20 (full), €18 (conc.)

Roots in Every Room (p. 43)

Anna D

7 Sept, 19:00

€16 (full), €14 (conc.)

Image Paddy Cahill

Diary Of A Dublin Drag Diva

DAVINA DEVINE

Have you ever wanted to read a drag queen’s diary?

Of course you have, you nosey b*tch.

Join Drag Legend Davina Devine on a glitter-soaked, high-heeled rollercoaster through her life and legacy.

With razor-sharp wit, outrageous stories, and a whole lot of heart, Davina takes audiences behind the lashes and into her world, from the club to the main stage.

This is not just a show — it’s two decades of resilience, reinvention, rhinestones and a celebration of queer culture, survival, and the unstoppable spirit of a true Dublin diva.

Performances 9 Sept, 18:00 (preview)

10 Sept, 18:00

11 Sept, 20:00

13 - 14 Sept, 20:00

14 Sept, 13:00

Prices €15 (full), €13 (conc.), €11 (preview)

Venue Bewley’s Café Theatre

Duration 60 mins

Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Evan Doherty

Co-presented by the Abbey Theatre & Dublin Fringe Festival

The Revenger’s Tragedy +353 Presents: +353 WITH

KEVIN KEOGH

Words are just words, and knives are just knives, right?

Scored by beats from the world of hiphop sub-genre, drill, where words are weapons and bodies are battlegrounds, two men wrestle with lust, shame, and revenge. This chopped and screwed reimagining of Thomas Middleton’s 1606 play serves as an exploration of often self-imploding masculine ideologies of vengeance.

Performed with a live orchestra, sliding 808’s, and floor-shaking bass, come experience this modern encounter with Jacobean verse and one of Ireland’s most prominent underground subcultures.

Performances 10 - 13 Sept, 21:00 13 Sept, 15:00

Prices €20 (full), €18 (conc.)

Venue Abbey Theatre - Peacock Stage

Duration 70 mins

Funded by the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon & Dublin City Council. Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival Studios, Mermaid Arts Centre & axis Ballymun. Supported by THISISPOPBABY, Fishamble: The New Play Company, Droichead Arts Centre & Dublin Fringe Festival X field:arts.

Please note, contains depictions of violence. This event features excessive loud noise/music, smoke machines, and strobe lighting. Venue has limited wheelchair accessibility.

Image David Copeland

Variations for Two Disabled Bodies

BOBBI BYRNE & SOSO NÍ CHEALLAIGH

Ever wondered what it would feel like to be in a completely different body?

Bobbi and Soso are very alike. Bobbi and Soso are very different.

Honest, witty and illuminating, this is a duet with a difference. It’s a rip-roaring tour through the lived experiences and hidden complexities of disability and gender. Join Bobbi and Soso as they explore everything from walking, to falling, to Davina McCall.

Performances 10 Sept, 18:30 (preview) 11 - 13 Sept, 18:30

All performances will be relaxed with ISL interpretation.

Prices €18 (full), €16 (conc.), €14 (preview)

Venue Project Arts Centre - Cube

Duration 50 mins

Commissioned by Project Arts Centre through Europe Beyond Access, co-funded by the European Union. Supported by Dance Ireland.

Please note, suitable for 12+. Contains mild references to mental health and depression. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Lost Lens Caps

LIBYA!

FARAH ELLE

What does it mean to have your heart broken open?

Farah Elle invites you into a world scented with jasmine and laced with truth, an intimate performance filled with the warmth of being welcomed home, asking what we bring with us and what we leave behind.

This sensory music and storytelling experience weaves family history, cultural duality, and radical love. Join Farah in celebrating community, healing and restoration, in being bold enough to choose to live with joy and love at the centre.

Performances 16 Sept, 18:00 (preview)

17 Sept, 13:00 (preview)

17 - 20 Sept, 19:50

18 Sept, 13:00

Prices €15 (full), €13 (conc.), €11 (preview)

Venue Bewley’s Café Theatre

Duration 75 mins

Supported by Dublin Fringe Festival. Please note, contains reference to mental health, depression, and depictions of violence. Venue is wheelchair accessible, please contact our box office at the time of booking.

Image ANPM Studios

That’s Sooo Povo

D’GIRLOS THEATRE

I’m about to flip this kip upside down and inside out

Gerrup Gerra your ma’s your da.

When Chantelle and Craoí, two working class Dublin drama students, lock horns over The Plough and the Stars, their combined rage brings forth Queen Povo, a drag-drenched larger-than-life entity who forces the girlos and the audience to examine what they’re thinking about when they think of class.

This riotous, razor-sharp debut crashes through class, art, and authenticity with wit, grit, and glitter. A juicy-tracksuit clad call to arms for anyone who’s ever felt too loud, too real, or just too povo.

Performances 17 Sept, 18:00 (preview)

18 - 20 Sept, 18:00

19 - 20 Sept, 13:00

Prices €15 (full), €13 (conc.), €11 (preview)

Venue Bewley’s Café Theatre

Duration 60 mins

Supported by Big Ambitions: a Dublin Fringe Festival & Fishamble: The New Play Company partnership, axis Ballymun, TCA & F2 Centre Rialto. Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival Studios.

Please note, this event features excessive loud noise/music, smoke machines, and strobe lighting. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Vlad Gurdis

In Their Shoes: Live

SEANCHOÍCHE

Ordinary people telling extraordinary stories.

A live podcast recording that invites audiences into a warm, intimate space where empathy leads. Two guests write stories on a shared theme from their lives, then swap and read each other’s aloud.

Hosted by the charming duo Gaff and Becks, it’s a raw, emotional, and often funny experience where vulnerability and connection shine. Through spontaneous questions and honest moments, the show reveals the power of perspective and invites the audience to live through someone else’s story.

Performance 18 Sept, 18:15

Prices €18 (full), €16 (conc.)

Venue Smock Alley Theatre - 1662

Duration 90 mins

The Collaborations Agency.

Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Bruno Agostini

Galavanter: A Life on the Road

HECTOR Ó HEOCHAGÁIN

From Siberia to the Solomon Islands, from the Amazon to Papua New Guinea, Hector will bring the audience on a magical and culture filled language enthused trip around the planet.

Join Hector Ó hEochagáin as he brings his stories and scéalta to the stage.

With the success of his Tommy, Hector & Laurita Podcast and his No.1 Bestselling book The Irish Words You Should Know, there will be no shortage of craic and stories, so passports ready, fasten your seatbelts and it’s time to go galavanting around the Globe.

Performances

20 Sept, 15:00 & 20:45

Prices €20 (full), €18 (conc.)

Venue Smock Alley Theatre - 1662

Duration 60 mins

Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Andrew Downes

Urgent Pleasure

Dive into the joyful,

experiential, communal.

Club, music, genre-defying work and wild nights out.

CRAWLER

JESSIE THOMPSON

Embark on a visceral journey moving through chaos, calm, and shared climax.

Following a string of 5-star reviews, this raw, physical duet from Jessie Thompson and Jason McNamara fuses dance, live drums, and electronic sound.

Together, they navigate shifting power dynamics and unearth raw connection, anchoring their world in a shared experience. Transcending from the guttural to the godlike, they devour space with adrenaline, mind-bending sound, and extreme physicality. Born from Ireland’s street dance scene this performance invites you to witness the foundations of their form, the magic within the unknown.

Performances 5 Sept, 21:15 (preview)

6 - 10 Sept, 21:15

12 Sept, 21:15

13 Sept, 13:15

Prices €18 (full), €16 (conc.), €14 (preview)

Venue Project Arts Centre - Cube

Duration 50 mins

Supported by Dance Ireland, Dublin Dance Festival, Fingal Arts Office, Galway Dance, Project Arts Centre & United Fall.

Please note, this event features excessive loud noise/music and uses smoke machines and strobe lighting. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Steve O’Connor

Clash At The Quays! II LOKOMANIA

AHMED, WITH LOVE.

Lokomania is running wild!

Clash At The Quays! is BACK for another round of hard-hitting tunes and harder hitting slams!

One night. One ring. Join some of Ireland’s finest musicians; Ahmed, With Love, Sloucho, VaticanJail, Julia Louise Knifefist, Lil Skag, Curtisy and Kibo, as they take to the ring to settle some scores. Expect musical rivalries, wrestling blood-feuds, and suplex-level silliness as live music collides with the wacky world of professional wrestling.

Are you ready to rumble?

Performance 6 Sept, 18:45 til late (doors 18:00)

Prices €25 (full), €20 (2 tickets for €40 deal), €18 (early bird)

Venue The Complex - The Depot

Fuelled By Four Loko. Supported by Dublin Fringe Festival’s Weft initiative.

Please note, contains depictions of violence. This event features excessive loud noise/music, contains the use of smoke machines and strobe lighting. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Paula Trojner

7even JOHN SPILLANE

Pride, Greed, Wrath, Envy, Lust, Gluttony, and Sloth. Pick your poison.

Join award-winning comedian and improviser John Spillane for seven nights, seven shows and seven deadly sins.

Each sin gets its own spotlight in a series of wildly different, wickedly funny shows. No two sins are created equal, no two nights are the same.

Known for his high-energy, high-octane style, Spillane guarantees a unique, unholy comedy experience, whichever night you dare to attend. John has appeared on RTÉ, BBC, Comedy Central and is a resident hosts of Ladbible Ireland.

Performances 6 Sept, 18:45

7 - 9 Sept, 20:45

12 - 14 Sept, 20:45

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.)

Venue The Lir Academy - Studio 2

Duration 60 mins

Supported by Dublin Fringe Festival Studios.

Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Dean Ben Ayre

OFFSPRING (A Modern Frankenstein)

EMILY TERNDRUP

In this visceral, genre-smashing collision of bold storytelling and exhilarating choreography, Terndrup exhumes the bones of Mary Shelley’s horror classic, reanimating them into a fiercely modern meditation on creation, control, and consequence.

Part gothic horror, part personal confession— inside this pulse-pounding performance is an artist in her midto-late 30s grappling with her conflicting desires — and fears — as she contemplates having a child.

As she plunges into the chaos, the beauty, and the terror of Creation, the show begins to mirror the very monster it interrogates: alive with contradictions, totally unpredictable, and profoundly human.

Performances 7 Sept, 18:00 (preview)

8 - 9 Sept, 18:00

11 - 13 Sept, 18:00

13 Sept, 13:30

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue Smock Alley Theatre - Patrick Sutton Studio

Duration 70 mins

Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival Studios. Funded by Cork County Council. Supported by Attic Projects, Cork Theatre Collective, Dance Cork Firkin Crane, MAKE & The Everyman Theatre.

Please note, contains reference to mental health and depictions of violence. This performance contains the smoke machines and strobe lighting. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Patricio Cassinoni

Presented by Dublin Fringe Festival

TESTO WET MESS

Wet Mess messifies transitions, testosterone and the edges of drag.

Combining movement with prerecorded interviews, expect surreal spectacles, dykey desires, and a choreography of guttural sexuality as Wet Mess pinches at the dull flesh of life where the magical is in the mundane and made-up shit becomes real.

Performances 9 - 10 Sept, 21:00

Prices €20 (full), €18 (conc.)

Venue Project Arts CentreSpace Upstairs

Duration 60 mins

Produced by Metal & Water, supported by Arts Council England. Commissioned by Cambridge Junction, The Yard Theatre & Wysing Arts Centre.

Please note, contains themes of transphobia & homophobia. This event features excessive loud noise/music, smoke machines, strobe lighting, and complete darkness. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image

Josh Quinton

Apocalypse HOW?

DOOMSLAYERS

The world has ended. GADZOOKS!

Thank goodness the Doomslayers, featuring Donna Fella, Annie Queeries and Laylah Beattie, are here to guide you seamlessly into the Bottom Bunker of this brave new world, however charred and radioactive it may be.

Expect cabaret, perfunctory provisions and a bunkerload of queer camaraderie in this ultimate guide through the doom and gloom of our dystopian present. Come along, release your inhibitions, feel the (acid) rain on your skin and watch as our unlikely Queeroes realise that maybe they do have what it takes to survive, thrive and energetically jive their way through Doomsday.

Performances 10 Sept, 20:30 (preview)

11 - 14 Sept, 20:30

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue Dublin Castle - Chapel Royal

Duration 60 mins

Please note, contains reference to mental health and depression. This event uses smoke machines and strobe lighting. Venue has limited wheelchair accessibility.

Image Bjornism

dublinitgirl_vs_dartlinediva rap battle royale

HARRY HENNESSY

Meet dublinitgirl, genderqueer icon.

Recently, she hung up her 365 party girl boots. Ever since she met her county player, she’s turned into a trad wife. But he has a sordid past: meet dartlinediva, stun-hun extraordinaire. See, she wasn’t too happy when he dropped her for a… well, she wouldn’t want her choice of words in print.

So what happens when Dublin’s messiest queens turn on one another? And shouldn’t they know better by now? Never fight over a man....

Performances 5 Sept, 18:00 (preview)

7 - 10 Sept, 21:15

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue Smock Alley Theatre - Patrick

Sutton Studio

Duration 50 mins

Supported by the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon.

Please note, this performance uses smoke machines and strobe lighting. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Kate Lawlor

Building Character

SÍOMHA HENNESSY

Some people spend their thirties building careers, houses, and savings. The only thing Síomha Hennessy has been building is ‘character’... and she’s got the songs and the stories to prove it!

Join tragicomic diva Síomha for a night to remember, as she launches her debut EP with a special comedy cabaret show complete with a full band and a whole lotta theatrics!

Come for the big laughs, the bold stories and Hennessy’s original songs. Stay for the existential crisis in a pair of cowboy boots.

Performance 11 Sept, 20:00 (doors 19:30)

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.)

Venue The Grand Social Duration 90 mins

Venue is not wheelchair accessible.

Image Kate Lawlor

Presented by Dublin Fringe Festival

Am I The A**hole?

DAFE ORUGBO & LISA NALLY

All rise. The Court of Public Opinion is now in session.

Can you ever wear white to a wedding?

Does replying ‘k’ constitute emotional abuse?

Should fuckboys pay emotional reparations?

And seriously, who gets the dog in the breakup?

You’re invited to a courtroom drama like you’ve never seen before. Satirical, comedic and experimental, this show turns the theatre-going experience into a game of cunning and manipulation.

Select your role as a member of the jury or the public audience in this immersive performance where the collective gets to decide: who is the a**hole?

Performances 11 Sept, 18:15 (preview)

12 Sept, 20:45

13 Sept, 15:00 & 18:15

Prices €18 (full), €16 (conc.), €14 (preview)

Venue Smock Alley Theatre - 1662

Duration 80 mins

Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival Studios. Supported by Big Ambitions: a Dublin Fringe Festival & Fishamble: The New Play Company partnership, Dublin Fringe Festival’s Weft initiative, Kildare County Council & The Riverbank Arts Centre.

Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Michael D’Angelo

GENESIS

SHAQIRA KNIGHTLY

Grit your teeth.

Shed your skin.

Dance to the electrifying beats.

Bionic, stimulating & bare skinned, Shaqira Knightly embraces the power of self-belief through the art of becoming someone else.

This is an invitation to abandon selfdoubt and regenerate through dance. Revel in the transformative power of drag under the lights of a queer dance floor. Come for the spectacle. Stay for the liberation.

It’s Saturday night. Let’s dance.

Stay after the show to dance it out with Ireland’s best queer club night, Mother.

Performances 13 & 20 Sept, 21:00 (doors: 20:30)

Prices €20 (full), €18 (conc.), optional

+€6 for Mother afterparty

Venue Lost Lane

Duration 90 mins

Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival Studios.

Please note, contains reference to sexual violence and depictions of violence. This event features excessive loud noise/music, and uses smoke machines and strobe lighting. Venue is not wheelchair accessible.

Image Daniel Mooney

Presented in collaboration with Mother

Cult of Aerobics

EMILY BRADLEY

Ever hated yourself? Great! Welcome to the Cult.

Cult of Aerobics is your glitter-drenched gateway drug to self-improvement, groupthink, and really good abs.

Join the charismatic leader on a high-energy journey through aerobics, obsession, and the dark side of perfection. With infectious choreography, biting humour and a suspicious amount of spandex, this immersive spectacle dares you to sweat it out, laugh it off, and maybe - just maybe - finally love yourself. Or at least love your reflection.

Image Sofia De Roses

Performances 16 Sept, 18:15 (preview)

17 Sept, 20:45 18 - 20 Sept, 18:15

20 Sept, 15:15

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue The Lir Academy - Studio 2

Duration 60 mins

Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival Studios & Scene+Heard. Supported by Gorilla Design with Dublin Fringe Festival.

Please note, contains themes of body dysmorphia. This performance uses smoke machines and strobe lighting. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

LAST GIG EVER!!

AGENTS & JUICE

Third time around. Two Idiots. One rave.

A theatrical, humoristic, physical and personal dive into the constraints, liberties and complexities of nightlife and DJ culture - and all the shite that comes with it.

A visceral journey through the liminal realms of the dancefloor, exploring fleeting moments and memories from both in front and behind the decks that last a lifetime in the body.

Join this duo as they chase chaos, euphoria, the especially-highs and definite-lows.

Performances 17 Sept, 18:45 (preview)

18 - 20 Sept, 18:45

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue Smock Alley Theatre - Patrick

Sutton Studio

Duration 60 mins

Developed at Schouwburg T*Agency.

Please note, this event features excessive loud noise/music, smoke machines, and strobe lighting. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Mees Princen

The Future is EGG

Welcome to the year 3000, where the future of Ireland is EGG — a dazzling DIY cabaret spectacular for the queers of tomorrow, today!

We’re looking ahead to a future worth celebrating, in all its eggy, gooey, filthy, gorgeous glory. With performances from the fiercest cabaret stars the galaxy has to offer — a lineup beamed straight from the glittering depths of ÉIRE 3000 — this is one small step for EGG, one fabulous leap for EGG-kind.

Performance 19 Sept, 20:00 til late (doors 19:00)

Prices €22 (full), €20 (conc.)

Venue The Sugar Club

Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival Studios.

Venue has limited wheelchair accessibility.

Image Anthony O’Connor

CIRQUE DU HONEYPOT HONEYPOT

A collaborative party during Dublin Fringe Festival 2025, curated by HONEYPOT.

CIRQUE DU HONEYPOT is a queer circusthemed extravaganza encompassing music, visuals, performance and interactivity with collaborations from local creatives and friends of HONEYPOT. Expect HONEYPOT residents, special guest DJs, face painting, and hypnotic dance floor energy. Get your freak on.

Performance 19 Sept, 23:00 til late Prices €15 (earlybird), €20 (general release), €25 (final release)

Venue The Grand Social

Venue is not wheelchair accessible.

Image Jasmin Grace

Presented by Dublin Fringe Festival

Radical Care Minding minding

ourselves, each other.

Work that asks how we understand and look after ourselves, our community, our legacies and our planet.

Co-presented by Civic Theatre & Dublin Fringe Festival

Co-produced by Promenade, Civic Theatre & The Everyman in association with Circus Factory

Birds

KUNDLE CRU

Can you see what’s boiling under the surface?

We are in the midst of huge global changes. Unarmed and unprepared; our wings are clipped, fuses are short and all that is needed is a spark to set it all aflame. What plan can we hatch to make things better for ourselves?

Join international dance and circus group Kundle Cru, led by choreographer Matt Szczerek as they take a bird’s-eye view of modern day life using energetic hip-hop, contemporary dance and circus moves with a hypnotic, pumping soundtrack.

Performances 4 Sept, 19:30 (preview)

5 Sept, 13:00 (preview)

6 Sept, 19:30

7 Sept, 13:00

Prices €18 (full), €16 (conc.)

€15 (previews & matinees)

Venue Civic Theatre - Main Space

Duration 55 mins

Funded by the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon & Fingal County Council. Supported by Crying Out Loud & Dublin Fringe Festival Studios.

Please note, contains reference to mental health and depression. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Karol Szarek

Presented by SoFFt Productions

Roots in Every Room ANNA D

‘The roots, untangled, become the tree.’

A powerful live performance blending spoken word poetry, film, and sound to tell a deeply personal story of healing and ancestral reckoning. Inspired by dreams passed down through generations, the show is a brutally honest exploration of the struggles of womanhood, trauma and emotional survival.

This visceral, multi-sensory experience invites you to witness one woman’s journey to break cycles, reclaim feminine power, and transform inherited pain into radical hope and strength.

Performances 6 Sept, 15:00 (preview)

6 - 8 Sept, 19:00

7 Sept, 15:00

ISL Interpreted Performance

7 Sept, 19:00

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue The Complex - The Gallery

Duration 60 mins

Supported by Backstage Theatre Longford, Fingal County Council, The Complex & Poetry Ireland.

Please note, contains reference to mental health and depression. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image George Hooker

Constriction

MAI ISHIKAWA

A Japanese bullet train. A woman. And a baby hatch.

Inside the train, we hear two voices talking about a woman who headed West to give up her baby. Sometimes serious, sometimes playful, they discuss the implications. But the more they talk, it seems, the less there is to say. And who are they, really?

This experimental work is a surreal exploration of motherhood and identity, using sound and movement to explore the pain of facing reality.

Image Kalina Leonard

Performances 7 Sept, 18:45 (preview)

8 - 11 Sept, 18:45 13 - 14 Sept, 13:30

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue The Lir Academy - Studio 2

Duration 50 mins

Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival Studios. Supported by Dublin Fringe Festival’s Weft & Break New Ground initiatives, the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon & Pan Pan.

Please note, contains reference to mental health, depression, and themes of child bereavement. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

CHOP

LORDS OF STRUT & CIAN KINSELLA

Big Axe. Big Muscles. Big Existential Horror. A Real Man. A Bro’s Bro. A macho & cool man who chops wood. Because chopping wood is what Real Men do. The world is burning, the birds are gone, and the only solution? More chopping. But the cracks start to show. And if the chopping stops... then what?

A violently stupid and stupidly violent deep dive into fragile egos, environmental collapse, and the absurdity of existence. Expect big laughs, real danger, and at least one existential crisis (probably yours).

Image Thom McDermot

Performances 10 Sept, 18:00 (preview)

11 - 13 Sept, 21:15

12 Sept, 13:30

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue Smock Alley TheatrePatrick Sutton Studio

Duration 50 mins

Funded by the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon. Supported by An Táin Arts Centre, Shawbrook & Visual Carlow.

Please note, contains depictions of violence. This event features excessive loud noise/music, contains the use of smoke machines and strobe lighting. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Itch

CHRISTOPHER MCAULEY

Christopher has an itch, an itch that just won’t go away… through trapeze, self-deprecating humour, vulnerability, and a conversation with his dad, he’s going to show you all the ways he’s tried to scratch it.

From Christopher’s lifelong experience with chronic eczema to growing up queer in the post-conflict streets of Belfast, this performance takes audiences on an emotional adventure towards radical self-acceptance. Expect full-frontal silliness, sadness, and a deeper love for flakey pastry.

Performances 9 Sept, 18:30 (preview)

10 - 13 Sept, 18:30 12 Sept, 13:15

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue Smock Alley Theatre - Boys’ School

Duration 50 mins

Funded by the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon & Arts Council Northern Ireland. Produced by Circusful, co-produced by Outburst Arts, Belfast. Developed at Scene+Heard. Supported by Circus Factory, Cork; Dublin Fringe Festival; IACC; Jacksons Lane; Korzo NL; Motion Chapel.

Please note, contains nudity, references to mental health and close-up images of eczema. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Ajuna Braunschweiger

Seón Simpson’s on a Tangent

SKELPIELIMMER PRODUCTIONS

Ever re-read your teenage diary?

Posted song lyrics as a cry for help? Had a secret poetry blog?

Seón Simpson did - and she’s turned it into stand-up gold.

There’s only one problem. She’s run out of material. That’s what happens when you use up all your love poems and all that’s left are poems about self-harm and suicide. But can she make suicide funny? You’re about to find out

A stand-up/theatre/TED Talk hybrid about mental health, oversharing, and wringing every last laugh out of your teenage trauma.

Performances 10 Sept, 20:30 (preview)

11 - 13 Sept, 20:30 12 - 13 Sept, 13:00

Prices €17 (full), €15 (conc.), €13 (preview)

Venue The New Theatre

Duration 60 mins

Developed through Tinderbox’s INCUBATE programme.

Please note, contains reference to mental health, depression, themes of suicide, and discussion of grooming. Venue has limited wheelchair accessibility.

Image Geraldine Smyth & Laura Craig

Sky/memory

GLASSHOUSE MUSIC, JENN NÍ MHORDHA (GWEYNN) & SORIA REILLY

Stretched apart, drawn across expanse. Swelling through shards of light. Hurled against matter. Sinking. Evaporating. Remembered, remembering.

A live music performance and sonic meditation on memory and the Irish sky. Beneath immersive, cascading visuals, a blend of chamber ensemble, voice, text, electronics, and string textures conjures somatic memories and submerged histories. Rooted in research by artist Jenn Ní Mhordha, and created with Maeve Kelly and Soria Reilly, this evocative concert invites audiences into a ritual of sound and sky - where memory drifts, lingers, and transforms.

Performances 5 - 6 Sept, 20:30

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.)

Venue Dublin Castle - Chapel Royal

Duration 60 mins

Supported by The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon.

Please note, this event features excessive loud noise/music. Venue has limited wheelchair accessibility.

Image Jenn Ní Mhordha

don’t copy me (copy)

GIFT HORSE THEATRE

Original art is dead and you’re invited to the funeral.

Have you ever had a great idea? Are you sure you had it first? When did you think of it? What prompted it? Can you claim it?

This show combines lecture, lies, fact, fiction, music, and dance to wrestle with tradition – and to provoke the Beckett Estate. For theatre virgins and veterans, Gift Horse Theatre presents a brand-new play that we stole from someone else.

Performances 16 Sept, 18:45 (preview)

17 - 20 Sept, 21:15

20 Sept, 13:30

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue Smock Alley TheatrePatrick Sutton Studio

Duration 60 mins

Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival Studios. Supported by Rough Magic SEEDS, Samuel Beckett Theatre & Pan Pan Platform at Dublin Fringe Festival.

Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Jilly McGrath

A Piano Meditation AS IF I ALWAYS KNEW

A semi-improvised solo piano performance inviting you to slow down and breathe.

Blending live music, gentle breath work, audience participation and soft humming, this intimate experience encourages deep listening, relaxation, and presence. Shaped by the energy in the room, each performance is unique - an invitation to connect with yourself and those around you.

Leave your phone behind, take a breath, and step into a moment of mindful calm.

Performances 16 Sept, 20:30 (preview) 17 - 20 Sept, 20:30

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue Dublin Castle - Chapel Royal

Duration 45 mins

Venue has limited wheelchair accessibility.

Image Zé Bateira

PerfectionisTÁ

LOUISA NÍ ÉIDEÁIN

Ever felt like you were born to be exceptional... and now you’re just tired? Ever chased perfection so hard you forgot what you actually want?

Then, this is the (self-sabotaging) selfhelp seminar you’ve been waiting for.

Join Louisa Ní Éideáin for a camp, comedic, musical ode to the mediocre perfectionists who were promised it all and are left as the victims of human shrinkflation. Expect to laugh, sing, do a few kegels and to ask - who are we trying to be perfect for?

Performed in English & Gaeilge

Performances 16 Sept, 21:00 (preview)

17 - 20 Sept, 18:30

20 Sept, 15:30

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue Smock Alley TheatreBoys’ School

Duration 60 mins

Developed at Scene+Heard. Supported by Gorilla Design.

Please note, contains reference to sexual violence, mental health, and depression. This performance uses smoke machines and strobe lighting. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Vlad Vasilescu

Shredder

DAVID MCGOVERN

A man with a shredder. He shreds the news. He shreds fascist propaganda. He shreds AI slop. He shreds recipes. He shreds his holiday photos. He shreds your holiday photos.

Shredder is an absurd reimagining of our information-heavy society. Influenced by science-fiction and satire, it’s a retro-futurist world of not just letting go but going off-grid.

What do you need in your life? Everything else is going in the shredder.

Performances 16 Sept, 21:15 (preview)

17 - 20 Sept, 21:15 20 Sept, 15:45

Prices €18 (full), €16 (conc.), €14 (preview)

Venue Project Arts Centre - Cube

Duration 50 mins

Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival Studios. Supported by Irish Theatre Institute (ITI).

Please note, contains use of smoke machines. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Amanda Braide

Change

CROÍ GLAN

This is an invocation. This dance performance weaves a powerful call to climate action through movement, music, and diverse bodies in motion.

Created by Croí Glan, a disabledled dance company, and inspired by Rebecca Solnit’s Not Too Late, this hopefilled performance reimagines the world through resilience, connection, and community. With collaborators from the Environmental Research Institute at UCC, Change is a vibrant celebration of what we’ve lost—and what we can still save.

The clock is ticking. Are you on board for change?

Image Emma Jervis

Please note, this performance uses smoke machines. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Performances

18 Sept, 18:15 (preview)

19 - 20 Sept, 18:15

20 Sept, 13:00

Audio Described Performance

19 Sept, 18:15

Post-show discussion

19th Sep, 19:15 - 19:45

Prices €20 (full), €18 (conc.), €16 (preview)

Venue Project Arts Centre -

Space Upstairs

Duration 60 mins

Funded by the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon, Climate Actions

Work Engagement fund & Luail.

Supported by Uillinn West Cork Arts Centre, Firkin Crane, UCC Environmental Research Institute & UCC Theatre Department.

This-Topia

MELTYBRAINS?

Meltybrains? are back. The cult Irish band return to Dublin Fringe Festival after seven years with a visceral, genre-smashing live show exploring 21st-century digital life through a collaborative ritual of fear, escapism, addiction, collective catharsis and transcendence.

This explosive new work fuses highoctane music with dance, visuals and surreal theatricality. It’s not just a comeback; it’s an ecstatic act of resurrection and a dive into our apocalyptic ideation.

Absurd and sacred in equal measure, This-Topia is part theatre, part rave, part group therapy - a meltdown in motion that asks what happens when identity unravels, and what’s waiting on the other side.

Performances 20 - 21 Sept, 20:00

Prices €22 (full), €20 (conc.)

Venue The Complex - The Depot

Duration 75 mins

Funded by the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon.

Please note, contains reference to mental health and depression. This event features excessive loud noise/ music, smoke machines, and strobe lighting. This is a standing gig, seating available if needed.

Image Mark McGuinness

Glass Places

BLUEHOUSE THEATRE

May works in a B&B near St Ciaran’s Holy Well. April works in the Aquadom, the world’s largest free-standing aquarium. They have known each other all their lives.

On December 16th 2022, the Aquadom explodes. One million litres of water flood the streets of Berlin. Fifteen hundred fish are killed. May and April try to pick up the pieces.

A play with music about family, fish and broken glass.

Performances 17 Sept, 18:30 (preview)

18 - 20 Sept, 18:30 19 Sept, 13:15

Prices €18 (full), €16 (conc.), €14 (preview)

Venue Project Arts Centre - Cube

Duration 100 mins

Developed at Scene+Heard, Dubin Fringe Festival Studios & Dublin Theatre Festival. Supported by Irish Theatre Institute (ITI), Players Theatre & Dublin Fringe Festival X field:arts.

Please note, contains reference to mental health and bereavement. Venue is wheelchair accessible, please contact our box office at the time of booking.

Image Dominic O’Brien

This City

Rediscover our city

with projects that take you somewhere new.

CREATIVITY ON TAP

WHERE BOLD IDEAS MEET ICONIC SPACES

This September, Dublin Fringe Festival are joining forces with Guinness Open Gate Brewery and Roe & Co Distillery to create something extraordinary for you.

Together, we’re transforming two of Dublin’s most iconic venues into stages for fresh voices, unforgettable performances, and moments of real connection.

This is a celebration of culture, community, and the spaces that make it all possible. Visit fringefest.com/news/creativity-on-tap for more details.

Holdings

CLARA MCSWEENEY & MEL GALLEY

Sit back, relax, this is a show that comes to you.

Want to buy a house in the future? As security blurs into speculation and the future feels increasingly uncertain, this remote performance explores what it really means to own a home.

Unfolding where you live - via a mysterious package, a phone call, and a cryptic website - this intimate encounter brings the deeply personal debate around housing into your own home.

Holdings stays with you, as much as it asks you to stay.

Created as part of Data Stories, in collaboration with Dr Danielle Hynes and Dr Samuel Mutter.

Performances 5 & 8 Sept, 16:00 - 20:00 6 - 7 & 13 - 14 Sept, 12:00 - 16:00 11 - 12 Sept, 16:00 - 20:00

Please note show runs at various times Prices €12 plus postage Venue Your home Duration 55 mins

Supported by Dublin Fringe Festival’s Make Space for Art fund.

Please note, for this performance you need access to a mobile phone with reliable reception and a strong internet connection.

Image Maria McSweeney & Patrick Fleming

Hungry Grass/ Stray Sod

WANDERING STORIES THEATRE

An Irish bisexual and an Ugandan lesbian meet in a foreign land. One turned up hoping for work, one was forced to flee her home. As they share stories from their past and cultures, strange parallels emerge.

Join us between worlds, stray from the path. The differences and similarities of our stories ripple through time. Don’t forget the lessons our ancestors taught us. Don’t believe it’ll never happen to you. A night of fucked up folklore and heartrending true stories.

Image @shirdelphotography & Niamh Mahony

Performances 8 Sept, 19:00 (preview)

8 Sept, 20:15

9 - 10 Sept, 19:00 & 20:15

15 - 17 Sept, 19:00 & 20:15

Prices €18 (full), €16 (conc.), €14 (preview)

Venue National Leprechaun Museum

Duration 50 mins

Supported by the National Leprechaun Museum.

Please note, contains reference to mental health, depression, sexual violence, themes of suicide and child bereavement, depictions of violence. The performance takes place in a dimly lit museum space.

Nothing Personal

ALLY RYAN

How bad are you willing to be in your life in order to be good at your craft?

Megan’s comedy dreams have crashed — and so has she, back living above her parents’ pub, dodging her mum’s passive aggression and her dad’s toasties.

After a nightmare date and a chaotic mic grab, she stumbles into success by turning heartbreak into material. But when someone genuinely lovely walks into her life, the lies start to cost more than laughs. A darkly funny onewoman rom-com about ambition, selfsabotage, and the impossible choice between love and success.

Performances 8 Sept, 19:30 (preview) 9 - 13 Sept, 19:30

Prices €15 (full), €13 (conc.), €11 (preview)

Venue Chaplins - Upstairs

Duration 60 mins

Supported by Dublin Fringe Festival’s Make Space for Art fund. Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival Studios.

Please note, contains reference to mental health, depression, and sexual violence. Venue is not wheelchair accessible.

Image Kamilla Koed Fenger & Becky Cheatle

Lessons On Revolution UNDONE THEATRE & CARMEN COLLECTIVE

1968. Three thousand students occupy the London School of Economics in the most significant act of protest in a generation.

2024. Trapped in their cramped London flat, two friends dive into the archives and discover the radical history of 1968 resonating with their desire for change today.

One of the Scotsman’s “Best Shows of the 2024 Edinburgh Fringe”, this soldout, critically acclaimed documentary theatre hit makes its international debut in Dublin.

Performances 9 Sept, 20:00 (preview)

10 Sept, 18:15 & 20:00

11 - 12 Sept, 20:00

13 - 14 Sept, 16:00 & 18:15

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue The Digital HubiD8 Studio at the Gatelodge

Duration 60 mins

Please note, contains themes of suicide, racism, and homophobia. Venue is wheelchair accessible, please contact our box office at the time of booking.

Image Jack Sain

Minaw Collective Jam

MINAW COLLECTIVE

Watch walls come to life as Ireland’s best female street artists live paint murals in a collective jam session. Join the Minaw Collective, a leading voice in the Irish street art scene, as we redraw the city together.

Founded in 2013, Minaw blends cultural infuences, vibrant colour, and a shared vision of empowerment and equality. Their name, a twist on mná (Irish for woman), refects their roots and reach.

Expect murals in motion, powerful visuals, and a street art experience that’s loud, live and unapologetically expressive.

Performance 6 Sept, 10:00 – 16:00

Exhibition 7 - 21 Sept, 10:00 – 18:00

Prices Free and unticketed

Venue The Digital Hub - Outdoor Courtyard

Supported by Dublin Fringe Festival’s Make Space for Art fund.

Please note, this event takes place outdoors, please dress appropriately. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Rachael Ward

View the murals on display across the festival dates.

ank God We’re Surrounded byWater

CIÚNAS

Taste the tides, hear the history, and see the shoreline like never before.

A cross-disciplinary, immersive experience exploring Ireland’s deep connection to the sea - through sound, visuals, and a modern tasting menu.

Join sound artist Samuel Julian Grace, CGI visual artist Mollie Mia Murphy, and chef Bill Nolan for an ambient communal journey where sustainable favours meet the Irish Sea, ecological memory, and cutting-edge tech.

Performances 15 - 16 Sept, 19:00

Price €20

Venue dlr LexIcon - The Studio

Duration 75 mins

Funded by Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council. Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival Studios.

Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Mollie Mia Murphy

PERFORMING MEMORY

COISCÉIM BROADREACH

Witness remembrance in motion. Join us under open skies. Step into a powerful outdoor dance experience that blends memory, movement, and place.

A cross-cultural collaboration rooted in Sasha Kurmaz’s response to the story of sisters in Ukraine who danced on soldiers’ graves, which sparked debate about appropriate ways to grieve.

Adapted for Dublin by choreographer Simone O’Toole, 20 non-professional dancers transform real stories into raw, collective movement. Poetic, emotional, and rooted in shared human experience.

A partnership project between CoisCéim Broadreach, Proto Produkciia Agency (Ukraine), & Arte Sella (Italy), supported by Perform Europe.

Performances

Fairview Park - Old Bandstand

19 Sept, 14:00 & 16:00

Wood Quay Amphitheatre

20 - 21 Sept, 13:00 & 13:45

Prices Free and unticketed

Venue Fairview Park - Old Bandstand & Wood Quay Amphitheatre

Duration 20 mins

Please note, this performance takes place outdoors, please dress appropriately. Fairview Park performance is unseated. Venues are wheelchair accessible, outdoor event accessible by path.

Image [Vital:38912] Courtesy of Dublin City Library & Archive

What Are We Waiting For

COLM KEEGAN & LBS MEN’S SHED

Waiting for things to change isn’t working anymore.

An exploration of mental health and masculinity, told through the voices of men in a doctor’s waiting room.

LBS Men’s Shed is a community group who share a shed, along with all that comes with it! Together with awardwinning writer Colm Keegan, this group are bringing their story to the stage of their local community centre.

Drawing inspiration from the work of Irish playwright Billy Roche and the haunting surrealism of Pink Floyd’s The Wall... with a little bit of magic thrown in.

Performances 19 - 20 Sept, 19:30

21 Sept, 15:00

Price €12

Venue Loughlinstown

Community Rooms

Duration 60 mins

Supported by Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council & DLR Arts Offce. This event is presented in support of LBS Men’s Shed.

Please note, contains themes of suicide. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Mark Stedman

Perspective Reflections

DANIEL CAREY KEATINGS & DARAGH HUGHES

What happens when we step off the expected route?

This is an invitation to look twice. What is visible depends on where you stand, what direction you choose, and how long you linger.

Explore shifting perspectives, this installation invites you to choose a point of view, to shift physically and perceptually, and to refect on how space, perspective, and intention shape what we see.

You’re invited not just to observe, but to refect, reframe, and reimagine.

Performances 6 - 21 Sept, various times Prices Free and unticketed Venue Streets of Dublin

Please note, this event takes place outdoots, please dress appropriately.

Image Daniel Carey Keating

Ailtireachtúil

ORLA O’KANE

Ailtireachtúil is designed to platform new creative outputs of architectural oral performance, written text and material installation within a new context, to confront the absence of Irish language within Irish architecture and to facilitate for participating architects a reconciliation of disparate parts of their identity and culture that have been kept apart in institutional and professional constructs. With the language as framework and medium, it is a collective process of challenge, discovery and refraction of ingrained rhetoric.

Performances 18 - 21 Sept, all day

For information about exhibition opening times, please visit the event listing on fringefest.com. This exhibition continues after the Festival - check the website listing for more details.

Prices Free and unticketed

Funded by the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon. Supported by Architectural Association of Ireland, Architecture Ireland, Royal Institute of Architects in Ireland & Type.ie.

Please check the fringefest.com/venues information on accessibility for this venue.

Image Marmar Architects

Play// time New new voices,

writing, new ideas.

12 great plays.

Good With Faces

OISÍN KEARNEY

Anne Garrick has tidied her house and bought the good biscuits. But when Liam Hegarty arrives to interview her, will she tell him what’s really going on with her son? A riveting new play about parenting, power, and what it means to care.

A new show from critically acclaimed Director Oisín Kearney (My Left Nut, Lie Low), starring Dearbháile McKinney (Blue Lights, Derry Girls) and Stefan Dunbar (Maze, Rebellion). Produced by awardwinning Gina Donnelly.

Performances 6 Sept, 18:30 (preview)

7 - 9 Sept, 18:30

11 Sept, 21:15

12 Sept, 13:15

13 Sept, 15:45 & 21:15

ISL Interpreted Performance

13 Sept, 15:45

Prices €18 (full), €16 (conc.), €14 (preview)

Venue Project Arts Centre - Cube

Duration 80 mins

Supported by Pavilion Theatre, Mermaid, An Grianán and Kabosh.

Please note, contains reference to mental health, depression, and themes of child abuse. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Lost Lens Caps

Image

In association with Pavilion Theatre

Homesick

TREASA NEALON

Jason emigrated to Perth three weeks and four days ago.

Jason returned home from Perth three weeks and three days ago.

Unbeknownst to his family, he’s been hiding in his childhood bedroom in Leitrim while felding their facetime calls and queries about the weather down under. It’s only a matter of time before it all goes tits up.

A one-man show about how grief shapes us, fear paralyses us and sometimes emmigrating can mean coming home.

Performances 6 Sept, 18:30 (preview)

7 - 8 Sept, 18:30

9 - 12 Sept, 20:30

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue The Pearse Centre

Duration 50 mins

Supported by Irish Theatre Institute (ITI), Leitrim Arts Offce & The Glens Art Centre.

Please note, contains reference to mental health, depression, and themes of suicide. Venue has limited wheelchair accessibility.

Image Catriona Bonner

Anonn | e Other Side

SCAOILTE THEATRE

This can’t be all there is.

An bhfuil tú cinnte?

Seoirse has been pretending to be a spirit medium. But when he actually makes contact with the other side, he’s forced to confront what he has done.

A one-man show tackling themes of grief, loss, and the macabre, all from the safety of a salt circle. Vulnerable, funny, and horrifying, this play asks: even if we could speak to the other side, would we be able to say anything at all?

Performed in English & Gaeilge

Image Fearghal O’Mahoney & Ewan McGrath

Performances 7 Sept, 18:30 (preview)

8 - 11 Sept, 21:00

13 Sept, 13:15

14 Sept, 21:00

ISL Interpreted Performance

14 Sept, 21:00

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue Smock Alley TheatreBoys’ School

Duration 55 mins

Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival Studios & Scene+Heard. Supported by Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, Irish Theatre Institute & Kildare County Council.

Please note, contains reference to mental health and depression. This event uses smoke machines and strobe lighting. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Don’t Tell Dad About Diana

HANNAH POWER & CONOR MURRAY

Dublin, 1997. Two friends prepare to compete for the crown of Alternative Miss Ireland with their Princess Diana drag act, under the noses of their hardline nationalist families. As they race through the city towards competition night, Diana’s death sparks the unravelling of their secret, their friendship and their plans to leave Ireland.

A high-energy, fast-paced two-hander packed with comedy, courage, and coming-of-age chaos.

Performances 8 Sept, 18:00 (preview)

9 - 10 Sept, 20:00

12 Sept, 13:00 & 20:00

13 Sept, 15:30 & 18:00

Prices €15 (full), €13 (conc.), €11 (preview)

Venue Bewley’s Café Theatre

Duration 55 mins

Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival

Studios & Scene+Heard. Supported by the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon.

Please note, this performance uses smoke machines and strobe lighting. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Erica Verling

Brambles

CARA CHRISTIE

Claire got a job! (Finally.) The catch? It’s in Dublin… so she’s just landed uninvited on her sister Holly’s doorstep.

As Claire digs into their family’s past, Holly’s busy burying her own, while partner Glen just wants to move forward. As old wounds resurface, this sharp, heartfelt drama asks: are we protecting those we love, or just shielding ourselves?

A tender, honest look at autism, family, and the stories that shape us.

Image Paul Donegan

Performances 10 Sept, 18:00 (preview)

11 - 13 Sept, 18:00 12 - 13 Sept, 15:30

Prices €17 (full), €15 (conc.), €13 (preview)

Venue The New Theatre

Duration 75 mins

Sponsored by Avolon. Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival Studios. Supported by the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon, the Irish Theatre Institute (ITI), Lyric Theatre & Pavilion Theatre.

Please note, contains reference to mental health and depression. This event features excessive loud noise/ music. Venue has limited wheelchair accessibility.

ATTENTION

JULES HEAD, GEORGIA BRUCE & TILLY TAYLOR

You stand at the edge of the circle.

You look at them, standing there too. You love them.

You know they love you.

You’ve stood here every day for the last nine years.

And every day, you’ve stepped inside. With them. Again and again and again.

What if love had a playbook? If we could play it like a sport? Would the rules make everything easier?

ATTENTION is a queer athletic play about love; about why and how we pay attention; it’s about the effort and sweat needed to build a life with another and whether love is enough to save us.

Performances 10 Sept, 20:45 (preview) 11 Sept, 20:45 12 - 14 Sept, 18:45 Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue The Lir Academy - Studio 2

Duration 60 mins

Venue is wheelchair accessible, please contact our box offce at the time of booking.

Image Jules Head

You’re So Special

JULIA GROGAN

Okay class, please can everyone crawl into a circle?

Ms Pam, are we telling all the parents that their children are special?

HI MISS JUNE

By day, Miss June teaches babies ballet. By night, she tries to escape the cuddles of her clingy boyfriend, who’s desperate to start a family.

Miss June hates babies and she hates parents. She defnitely doesn’t want to be one.

‘Grogan is who we’ve been waiting for!’

— Phoebe Waller-Bridge

Performances 11 Sept, 13:00 & 18:00 (previews)

12 Sept, 18:00

13 Sept, 13:00

14 Sept, 15:30 & 18:00

Prices €15 (full), €13 (conc.), €11 (preview)

Venue Bewley’s Café Theatre

Duration 60 mins

Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival Studios.

Please note, contains reference to mental health, depression, and themes of child bereavement. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Oscar Rutishauser-Mills

AMSTERDAM

MADE UP PRODUCTIONS

Is there a… vibe?

Himself and Herself arrive in Amsterdam as friends, best friends, but somewhere between the canals and coffee shops, something terrible happens: they catch feelings.

Is it love in the air—or just weed? Reeling from unexpected feelings, they scramble to keep things normal. But how do you fall for your best friend without being creepy? And can you be a feminist in a world as messy as modern romance?

This is an anxious love story about the ultimate bad idea, falling for your best friend.

Performances 12 Sept, 19:30 (preview)

13 - 18 Sept, 19:30

Prices €18 (full), €16 (conc.), €14 (preview)

Venue Glass Mask Theatre

Duration 70 mins

Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival Studios & Scene+Heard, supported by axis Ballymun.

Venue is not wheelchair accessible.

Image Mia Rodgers

He Dies in the End

LIAM MCCARTHY

Matty’s dead, but it’s not as bad as it sounds.

There’s no need to be sad, he says, sure he didn’t have much going for himself in the frst place. He’s no big loss... Matty recounts his last day alive, over and over, telling us contradicting stories about a life that was already falling apart.

An irreverent, funny play about love and grief, and a young man making sense of his life on the day that he dies. Performed by Darren Yorke and designed by Emily Waters.

Performances 16 Sept, 18:30 (preview)

17 Sept, 21:00 (preview)

18 - 20 Sept, 21:00

19 - 20 Sept, 13:15

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue Smock Alley TheatreBoys’ School

Duration 55 mins

Supported by Irish Theatre Institute (ITI). Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival Studios.

Please note, contains themes of suicide and depictions of violence. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Róisín White

!e Chalice

BRIGID LEAHY

When a medieval chalice is unearthed on an Irish farm, three characters clash over its ownership. An American tracing her lineage insists it’s part of her family legacy but the son of the landowners sees it as his to keep. Tensions spike when a government worker, an immigrant to Ireland, asserts that the state has the strongest claim.

A sharp, dark comedy about ownership, identity, and the messy politics of cultural inheritance.

Image Róisín Nolan

Performances 16 Sept, 18:00 (preview)

17 - 20 Sept, 20:30

18 Sept, 13:00, 20 Sept, 15:30

Prices €17 (full), €15 (conc.), €13 (preview)

Venue The New Theatre

Duration 75 mins

Supported by the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon, Dublin Fringe Festival’s Weft initiative, Irish Theatre institute (ITI) & Smock Alley Theatre. Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival Studios with additional support from Dublinia.

Please note, contains reference to sexual violence, mental health, depression, and themes of racism. Venue has limited wheelchair accessibility.

e Deadline Project

ARÍNOLÁTHEATRE

As the end of the world approaches, two grieving musicians record their music and answer psychological questions for an AI model built for human preservation, all while they question their motivations, relationships, music and grief.

A soft sci-f folk musical full of quiet apocalypses and loud emotions, this is Once meets Black Mirror for anyone who feels like they are living at the end of the world.

Performances 17 Sept, 18:00 (preview)

18 - 20 Sept, 18:00

19 - 20 Sept, 13:00

Prices €17 (full), €15 (conc.), €13 (preview)

Venue The New Theatre

Duration 90 mins

Supported by Gorilla Design with Dublin Fringe Festival.

Please note, contains themes of suicide. Venue has limited wheelchair accessibility.

Image Luka Simic

IN A BAD WAY

ISOLDE FENTON

Grá is sick. With what, she’s not sure. Blood clots, maybe? Foreign Accent Syndrome, possibly? Bum Cancermost defnitely; The Ginger One from Desperate Housewives has it. Sat in a GP on Dame Street, she’s with The Doctor (for the ffth time this month) and she won’t rest until she has a diagnosis.

A darkly comedic, touching, fast paced one woman show about hypochondria, Coppers, loneliness and Cork. (Up Cork!)

Image Rosa Mäkelä

Performances 17 Sept, 18:15 (preview)

18 - 20 Sept, 20:45

19 - 20 Sept, 13:00

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue The Lir Academy - Studio 2

Duration 50 mins

Developed at Cork Theatre Collective & Dublin Fringe Festival Studios. Supported by Cork Fringe Festival, Irish Theatre Institute & Dublin Fringe Festival X feld:arts.

Please note, contains reference to mental health. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Craicing Up Show your laugh from

, your belly.

Hilarious improv, stand-up and big laughs from the comics you love and the next big things.

I Want To Speak To Your Manager

(How I Was Radicalised And Became... Karen)

HOLLY HUGHES

You’ve heard this woman in a café, loudly complaining her extra-hot-skinny latté isn’t hot enough. You’ve seen her in a restaurant, demanding dishes that aren’t on the menu.

You’ve met her in the ALDI car park, where her SUV takes up multiple spaces.

The dreaded Karen. But could youdown-to-earth, sound, people-pleasing - become her? Holly did. And she’s ready to speak her truth. This is the story of one woman’s radicalisation to fghting for justice (i.e. refunds), one complaint email at a time. But, Holly wonders, with broligarch losers destroying the world, is being a Karen REALLY that bad?

Performances 5 Sept, 18:30 (preview)

6 - 8 Sept, 20:30

13 Sept, 13:30

13 - 14 Sept, 20:30

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue The Pearse Centre

Duration 45 mins

Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival

Studios & Scene+Heard.

Venue has limited wheelchair accessibility.

Image Jilly McGrath

Co-presented by the Abbey Theatre & Dublin Fringe Festival

Who’s a Big Boy?

SHANE DANIEL BYRNE

Dublin darling Shane Daniel Byrne is back, just about. The award-winning stand-up has become a leading act in Ireland at breakneck speed.

Shane is the boy from school who was capable of more, the kid who could always do better. Well, just try catching him now.

Expect rapid-fre craic and big-hearted feelings in his brand-new show about bellies and bullies.

Performance 6 Sept, 20:00

Prices €25 (full), €23 (conc.),

Venue Abbey Theatre - Abbey Stage Duration 60 mins

Aviary Talent.

Venue has limited wheelchair accessibility.

Image Duane Doogan

Stephen Jobs

STEPHEN COLFER

A stand up comedy show that doesn’t just ask What do you do for a living? but Why do you do for a living?

Stephen Colfer has juggled two decades of odd jobs to support his ‘real’ one... comedy. Somewhere between alphabetising CDs, demoing tech that doesn’t work, letting one hundred trainee doctors practice on his ears, and occasionally making art for money, he hopes to answer the question: where does Stephen end, and Jobs begin?

Image Eddie Murphy

Performances 6 Sept, 13:15 (preview)

6 & 8 Sept, 18:30

7 Sept, 21:00

12 & 13 Sept, 21:00

14 Sept, 18:30

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue Smock Alley TheatreBoys’ School

Duration 60 mins

Developed at Dublin Fringe Festival Studios & Scene+Heard.

Aviary Talent.

Please note, contains themes of suicide, reference to mental health and depression. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Comedy for Witches: Full Moon Special

ANNA CLIFFORD

Come forth, sexy hexies and beautiful battleaxes!

It’s a full moon and we feel like howling with laughter. Join Anna Clifford and some hilarious hags as she summons the Full Moon Special a one-night-only comedy ritual for anyone who blames the moon instead of their mother.

This is an audience-interaction show, so prepare to overshare... like your aunt on Facebook. Expect a night of rituals, riotous cackles, and lunar nonsense for witches, wannabes, and the cosmically curious.

Performance 7 Sept, 20:00

Prices €18 (full), €16 (conc.)

Venue Dublin Castle - Chapel Royal

Duration 75 mins

The Collaborations Agency.

Please note, contains reference to mental health and depression. This event features excessive loud noise/ music. Venue has limited wheelchair accessibility.

Image Swiss Chocolate Pictures

e Cultured Culchie

SINÉAD QUINLAN

Sinéad Quinlan is coming out… as a culchie.

Sinéad didn’t think she was one, until an ex told her she passed the test. Cue identity crisis. Should she have been going to the Ploughing Festival all this time?

In her debut solo show, she dives headfrst into her culchie roots and her wild detour into comedy, with sharp storytelling, big heart, and no fear of the hard topics (or the Ploughing). This is a hilarious reckoning with rural identity, heartbreak, and the long, bumpy road to fnding yourself.

Performances 8 Sept, 18:00 (preview) 9 - 12 Sept, 18:00 13 Sept, 13:00

Prices €15 (full), €13 (conc.), €11 (preview)

Venue The International Bar Duration 60 mins

Aviary Talent.

Please note, contains reference to mental health, depression, and themes of suicide. Venue is not wheelchair accessible.

Image Stephen Black Photography

Train Man

CAROLINE MCEVOY

A captivating tale of sibling rivalry in post-Troubles Northern Ireland. With gut-punch gags and emotional blows, Caroline reckons with her lifelong battle with her younger brother, who loves trains, buses and getting his way.

Funny, joyful, and deeply personal, this is a story about coming to terms with a messy past and complicated future, one where Caroline might have to balance caring for her adult brother with her own desires. Expect sibling spats, visits to the London Transport Museum and a whole lotta Disney as Caroline explores family, love, and full-time care.

Performances

9 Sept, 18:30 (preview)

10 - 14 Sept, 18:30

13 Sept, 15:30

Prices €16 (full), €14 (conc.), €12 (preview)

Venue The Pearse Centre

Duration 60 mins

Please note, contains the use of strobe lighting. Venue has limited wheelchair accessibility.

Image Rebecca Need-Menear & Michael Julings

Fry Me to the Moon

MICHAEL FRY

Michael Fry has reached the age his parents were when they had him, and he’s not coping well.

Fry Me to The Moon marks his frst full solo show, combining razor-sharp wit, absurd characters, and original music.

As traditional milestones like marriage, kids, and fnancial stability feel increasingly out of reach, Fry dives into the chaos of growing up, growing older, and fguring it all out.

Performances 9 - 11 Sept, 20:45

Prices €18 (full), €16 (conc.)

Venue Smock Alley Theatre - 1662

Duration 60 mins

The Collaborations Agency.

Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Paddy Kirk

You CryWeird

TONY CANTWELL

Tony Cantwell is at war with toxic masculinity.

His greatest weapon? Crying loads.

A comedy show built around life’s strangest emotional outbursts, from odd tears in Transition Year to a meltdown over Bluey. Through surreal tangents and personal confessions, Tony explores how unexpected tears reveal our truest selves.

It’s weird, heartfelt, and hilarious - a glimpse into the moments when emotions sneak up on us, just as we’re pretending to have it all together. This is Tony at his most ridiculous and most relatable.

Performances 12 Sept, 18:15

13 - 15 Sept, 20:45

13 Sept, 13:00

Prices €18 (full), €16 (conc.)

Venue Smock Alley Theatre - 1662

Duration 60 mins

Aviary Talent.

Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image Tony Cantwell

Queens of Comedy

AIDEEN MCQUEEN, SOPHIA WREN & GUESTS

Get ready to bow down. Queens of Comedy brings three nights of fearless, fast-paced stand-up to Dublin Fringe Festival. Hosted each night by resident royals, the unstoppable Aideen McQueen and the ferociously funny Sophia Wren.

Each night, a rotating cast of Ireland’s fercest gas women join the court, serving bold laughs, outrageous tales, and serious sass. From rising stars to comedy icons, this is a celebration of women who rule the mic and own the stage. These queens are ready to reign.

Performances 14 - 15 Sept, 18:15 16 Sept, 20:45

Prices €18 (full), €16 (conc.)

Venue Smock Alley Theatre - 1662

Duration 60 mins

Aviary Talent.

Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image John Henderson

Shane of Fools

SHANE CLIFFORD

A brilliant, brand-new show full of hilarious stand-up comedy has tumbled straight out of Shane Clifford’s silly mind and he has GOT to share it with you.

Join Shane as he takes you on a whirlwind tour of his world and tackles ALL of the big themes, from Irish history to parenthood, from the meaning of existence itself to the tragic fall of Diet Coke.

‘The best comedian in Ireland, hands down’ — Blindboy Boatclub

Performances 15 Sept, 18:00 (preview)

16 - 19 Sept, 18:00

20 Sept, 13:00

Prices €15 (full), €13 (conc.), €11 (preview)

Venue The International Bar

Duration 60 mins

The Lisa Richard’s Agency.

Venue is not wheelchair accessible.

Image Dean Ben Ayre

Big

ALISON SPITTLE

A man on the train tells her to sit down and now she’s doing a whole stand up show about it.

Spittle returns to Dublin Fringe Festival after a monumental few years, from appearing on House of Games, Celebrity Gogglebox, and Pointless Celebrities to touring with Fern Brady and Rob Delaney.

In this brand new show Alison confronts misogyny, sexuality, classism, death and M&Ms in a hilarious and often angry show about the change that the last year of her life has imposed upon her.

Performances 16 Sept, 21:00 (preview)

17 - 20 Sept, 21:00 20 Sept, 15:00

Prices €20 (full), €18 (conc.), €16 (preview)

Venue Project Arts Centre - Space Upstairs

Duration 60 mins

The Lisa Richard’s Agency.

Please note, contains reference to mental health and depression. Venue is wheelchair accessible, please contact our box offce at the time of booking.

Image Karla Gowlett

SOAPSTAR

ANNA CLIFFORD

Anna was born on the 7th of the 7th, and her Da swore it would guarantee her a life of luck.

Now at 35 after seven heartbreaks (four real, three delulu), seven tattoos (meaningless), and seven trips back home, she’s starting to wonder if her biggest break was landing a role on Ireland’s biggest soap at 17.

This is a show about luck, life, and what it means to have a lucky life - where you can’t change the channel, because that’s life (live stand-up). Sorry.

Performances 18 - 19 Sept, 20:45

Prices €18 (full), €16 (conc.)

Venue Smock Alley Theatre - 1662

Duration 60 mins

The Collaborations Agency.

Please note, contains reference to mental health and depression Venue is wheelchair accessible, please contact our box offce at the time of booking.

Image Paulie O’Byrne

Eras Tour: An Improvised History Musical

BUM NOTES

They say history is written by the victors… now watch it being made-up by a bunch of improvisers via the medium of SONG*!

This un-educational adventure through time is bound to be one for the ages. Pick a date or little-known historical moment and witness it transform into a fully blown musical on the spot, including live improvised musical accompaniment.

This time instead… let history be written by the Bum Notes.

*and sporadic dancing.

Performances

6 - 7 Sept, 20:45

17 Sept, 20:45

20 Sept, 18:15

Prices €18 (full), €16 (conc.)

Venue Smock Alley Theatre - 1662

Duration 60 mins

Developed at Scene+Heard.

Venue is wheelchair accessible, please contact our box offce at the time of booking.

Image John Close

Young Radicals

For the bold, for the brave, for the under 18s.

Shows made with and for young people.

e Shape of Quiet Feelings

MAISIE LEE

Bring the kids and let their imaginations lead the way! What does climate change feel like and what if that feeling came to life as a creature?

Children in Galway and Dublin explored this idea, inspiring a theatrical, sensory experience where big questions meet playful creativity. Created by artists Maisie Lee, Jessica Wilson, Stephen Dodd, Anna Mullarkey, and Tommy Casby, this is a family-friendly journey into emotions, imagination, and how we face the future together.

Image Anita Murphy

For audiences 8+.

Performances

5 Sept, 15:00 & 17:00 (previews)

6 - 7 Sept, 11:00 - 17:00 (various times)

11 - 12 Sept, 16:00 & 17:00

13 Sept, 10:00, 11:00 & 12:00

14 Sept, 11:00 - 17:00 (various times)

School Performances

9 - 12 Sept, 9:30, 10:30 & 11:30

Schools booking at www.milltheatre.ie

Price €12

Venue dlr Mill TheatreMaureen O’Hara Studio

Duration 20 min show & 20 min workshop

Commissioned by Baboró International Arts Festival for Children. Supported by Dublin Fringe Festival through the TRACKS co-commission fund.

Please note, contains smoke machines and strobe lighting. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

TenderWRITE

Shorts & Big Plays

To be TENDER, to show care.

WRITE, to mark, on a surface, typically paper, with a pen, pencil or similar implement.

This series of readings shine a light on fresh stories from exciting new playwrights, all aged 16-24. Come experience life through the eyes of our youngest artists. There is love and desire, anxiety and fear, and a great ability to laugh despite the fact that the world is heating up to a point of explosion.

TenderWRITE Shorts

Project Arts Centre – Cube

8 Sept, 11:00 & 14:00, Free but ticketed

Duration: 75 mins

The three shorts are:

Feel Shit by David Rawle

Scat by Aidan Kelly

Fear Food by Blaithín Seville

TenderWRITE Big Plays: No Esc by Cal Ó Muirí

Smock Alley Theatre – 1662

16 Sept, 12:00, Free but ticketed

Duration: 90 mins

TenderWRITE Big Plays: Forbidden Fruit by Susannah Al Fraihat

Smock Alley Theatre – 1662

16 Sept, 16:30, Free but ticketed

Duration: 100 mins

TenderWRITE is a young artist development programme in The Civic Theatre, Tallaght. Two new works in the 2025 Dublin Fringe Festival Programme have associations with TenderWRITE, AMSTERDAM by David Rawle (pg. 79) was developed as part of TenderWRITE and Sophie O’Toole of D’Girlos Theatre, That’s Sooo Povo co-written with Trudy Nolan (pg. 20), is a TenderWRITE playwright.

For young adult audiences, 13+. Also suitable for adult audiences.

Co-presented by Civic Theatre & Dublin Fringe Festival

REVERB LUAIL

Feel the reverb, feel the beat.

This is a high-energy dance and music performance that pulls you into the rhythm. Created by Sarah Golding with epic live music from Lisa Canny, performed by Luail’s Company Dancers - legacy meets contemporary in a pulse-pounding explosion of sound and movement.

You’ll be brought to your feet. You’ll feel every note. It’s like the best gig you’ve ever been to. Turn up, tune in, and get ready to move.

For audiences 13+.

Performances 11 Sept, 19:30 12 Sept, 12:00

Prices €20 (full), €12 (conc.)

Venue Civic Theatre - Main Space

Duration 50 mins

Funded by The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon.

Please note, this event features excessive loud noise/music, smoke machines, and strobe lighting. Venue is wheelchair accessible.

Image

Patricio Cassinoni

Pick ‘n’ Mix!: An Improvised Youth Musical

BUM NOTES

A sweet, silly, interactive musical adventure where young folk are the writers.

Shout out your wildest characters, games, dream sweets or whatever your imagination can cook up and watch eight fearless improvisers and a live piano turn them into a toe-tapping tale on the spot.

No two shows are the same and every performance is a freshly-mixed bag of songs, laughter and colourful surprises.

For young people of all ages, and fun-loving grownups alike.

Performance 20 Sept, 13:00

Prices €12 (all tickets), €40 (family ticket for 4)

Venue Smock Alley Theatre - 1662

Duration 60 mins

Developed at Scene+Heard.

Venue is wheelchair accessible, please contact our box offce at the time of booking.

Image John Close

BEST PRODUCTION

2025 AWARDS

Sunday 21 September

For the show that has it all.

GORILLA DESIGN’S BEST DESIGN AWARD

Outstanding lighting, sound, scenic, projection, costume or overall design.

BEST PERFORMERS

Two of this year’s brightest stars will take home this accolade.

BEST ENSEMBLE

The standout ensemble – the heartbeat of a show.

JUDGE’S CHOICE AWARDS

Three awards to acknowledge something that defes categorisation but must be recognised for its brilliance.

FISHAMBLE NEW WRITING AWARD

Awarded to an emerging Irish or Irelandbased writer for a new play. The award includes dramaturgical support by Fishamble: The New Play Company.

FIRST FORTNIGHT AWARD

The winner will be invited to perform at the First Fortnight Festival in January 2026. First Fortnight’s mission is mental health awareness, challenging prejudice and ending stigma.

NEXT STAGE WILD CARD

A bursary to be part of the Next Stage at Dublin Theatre Festival with Performing Arts Forum.

BEWLEY’S CAFÉ THEATRE LITTLE GEM AWARD

The most exciting show that’s under 60 minutes wins a handsome prize: a twoweek run at Bewley’s Café Theatre and €2000 for the remount.

SPIRIT OF WIT MOIRA BRADY AVERILL AWARD

A unique award for an artist willing to take risks and whose work defes categorisation. In memory of Moira Brady Averill, who had the power to

transform through alchemical wit. The award comes with a monetary prize and a Walker Mettling illustration.

RADICAL SPIRIT

Co-presented by Dublin Fringe Festival and Project Arts Centre. This presentation award is for an Irish artist dedicated to making bold, contemporary work which embodies the radical spirit of both organisations. They will receive a week’s run in Project Arts Centre 2026, supported by a €3000 guarantee.

THE GEORGE FITZMAURICE AWARD

This award will connect an experimental artist who has an original voice with St. John’s Theatre, Listowel via a twoweek residency. The prize includes a €1500 bursary, workspace and travel/ accommodation.

SOLAS NUA NEW VOICES AWARD

This award offers one festival playwright the chance to have their play read at Solas Nua in Washington USA. It’s for writers with a unique voice who are addressing current social, political, or cultural topics.

NEW AWARDS FOR 2025

MAKING IT HAPPEN AWARD

Awarded to a techie who made magic happen, celebrating the boundless innovation and tireless hard work of production staff. In memory of our recently dearly departed colleague, Marcus Costello, a person who always made the impossible possible.

COISCÉIM DANCE THEATRE MOVEMENT AWARD

Awarded to a spectacular production in dance or physical language. The CoisCéim Movement Award supports research & development of new work for the authoring artists through a studio residency and mentorship. In association with Two Pups.

NETWORK & SHOWCASE

Make work. Make connections

20TH ANNUAL INFORMATION TOOLBOX

Friday 12 Sept

Join us for a milestone edition of this vital networking event for theatre and dance artists. Celebrating two decades of connection and collaboration, Information Toolbox continues to play a key role in developing touring and partnership opportunities for Irish artists.

Irish Theatre Institute (ITI), in partnership with Culture Ireland, hosts this event which is an opportunity to connect with programmers, presenters, and potential collaborators from Ireland and abroad. Full details, including venue and time, are available on fringefest.com and irishtheatreinstitute.ie.

How It Works

You must register to attend. Before the event, you’ll receive a personalised schedule of one-to-one meetings. Eligibility: You must be presenting a theatre or dance show in Dublin Fringe Festival 2025.

Registration Details

Opens: 10th July 2025

Closes: 10th August 2025

Capacity is limited. Early registration is strongly advised! Information Toolbox is supported by the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon and Culture Ireland.

SHOW AND TELL: ARTIST PITCHING AT DUBLIN FRINGE FESTIVAL

Show and Tell is a curated pitching session for Irish artists with completed work or work in development. It offers a platform for those who are not presenting work in Dublin Fringe Festival 2025 to share their projects. Organised by Culture Ireland and ITI in partnership with Dublin Fringe Festival, this session aims to help artists secure development support, presenting partners, and grow touring opportunities.

Show and Tell offers an opportunity for those not presenting in the festival to connect with key industry players.

How to Participate

Artists are selected through an open call launching later this summer. Participants will receive pitching training. The session will take place during the festival for an invited audience of programmers and presenters. Information will be available at cultureireland.ie.

SCRIPTED

Saturday 13 Sept, 15:00

The Lir Academy - Studio 1

Free but ticketed event

Duration: 75 mins

Join us for an afternoon of performed readings of extracts of new plays by this year’s MFA playwrights at The Lir Academy. These readings are presented by a director with a professional cast. This year’s playwrights are Aoife Cronin, Ciara Hanley, Paula Rodríguez Caballero, and Íde Simpson.

28. The Pearse Centre * 27 Pearse Street, D2

23. The Grand Social 10 Wellington Quay, Temple Bar, D2

29. The Racket Space Cross Guns Bridge, Glasnevin, D9

24. The International Bar 23 Wicklow Street, D2

30. The Sugar Club * 8 Leeson Street Lower, D2

31. Wood Quay Amphitheatre * Dublin City Council Civic Offces, Wood Quay, D8

25. The Lir AcademyStudio 1 Corner of Pearse Street and Grand Canal Quay, D2

VENUES

18. Smock Alley TheatrePatrick Sutton Studio 6-7 Exchange Street Lower, Temple Bar, D8

32. Your home When joining from home, you will need a phone with reliable reception and a reliable internet connection.

26. The Lir AcademyStudio 2 Corner of Pearse Street and Grand Canal Quay, D2

27. The New Theatre * 43 Essex Street East, Temple Bar, D2

19. The ComplexThe Depot 12 Mary’s Abbey, D7 20. The ComplexThe Gallery 21-25 Arran Street East, D7 21. The Digital HubiD8 Studio at the Gatelodge 10-13 Thomas Street, D8 22. The Digital HubOutdoor Courtyard 10-13 Thomas Street, D8

13. National Leprechaun Museum 2/3 Mary’s Abbey, D7 14. Project Arts CentreCube East Essex Street, Temple Bar, D2 15. Project Arts CentreSpace Upstairs East Essex Street, Temple Bar, D2 16. Smock Alley TheatreBoys’ School 6-7 Exchange Street Lower, Temple Bar, D8 17. Smock Alley Theatre1662 6-7 Exchange Street Lower, Temple Bar, D8

7. dlr Mill TheatreMaureen O’Hara Studio 16 Sandyford Road, Dundrum, D16 8. Dublin CastleChapel Royal * Castle Street, D2 9. Fairview ParkOld Bandstand Fairview, D3 10. Glass Mask Theatre 41 Dawson Street, D2 11. Lost Lane 1-2 Adam Court, Grafton Street, D2 12. Loughlinstown Community Rooms Loughlinstown, County Dublin

1. Abbey TheatreAbbey Stage * 26/27 Lower Abbey Street, D1

2. Abbey TheatrePeacock Stage * 26/27 Lower Abbey Street, D1

3. Bewley’s Café Theatre 8/79 Grafton Street, D2 4. ChaplinsUpstairs 1-2 Hawkins Street, D2

5. Civic TheatreMain Space Parthalán Place, Tallaght, D24 6. dlr LexIconThe Studio Haigh Terrace, Dún Laoghaire

For more information on venue accessibility, please check the venues page on our website at fringefest.com/venues. If you or a member of your party is a wheelchair user or needs special assistance at any of our venues please inform our Box Offce at the time of booking by emailing boxoffce@fringefest.com or phone us on 1800 374 643 .

We set out to make Dublin Fringe Festival 2025 our boldest edition yet, flled with wild unfettered joy and catharsis through communal care. It wouldn’t have been possible without the exceptional collaborators who help make our vision a reality.

Artists, none of this would be possible without you. You are our biggest inspiration, our guiding light: the risk-takers, the mess-makers and the sooth-sayers. We thank you for bringing this year’s festival into being.

To our core funders, the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon and Dublin City Council, we extend our gratitude. Your continuous support ensures that the arts continue to thrive in our city.

To our intrepid, truth-seeking, craic-hunting audiences –Dublin Fringe Festival exists because of you. Thank you for your curiosity, passion and support.

To Áine, Filipa, Julie, Dan, Luke, Miles, Michael, Carly, Brian and Oonagh, our exceptional board, and to the inimitable Lara Hickey, our outgoing Chair: you’re Fringe heroes! The biggest of thank yous for your steadfast guidance, your care, your wisdom and your trust.

Thank you to Niamh Murtagh for your wit, your practicality, your care for artists and your curatorial vision. To Carol Lakes for keeping us on track and keeping up the craic, Sarah Snee for your cheer and your meticulousness and Conor Hogan for your incredible eye for both the most miniscule of details and the most fabulous of jumpers. To our previous Festival Director David Francis Moore, thanks for your guidance, grá and great craic. We thank you all for bringing your skills to the team.

To Marcus Costello, who sadly passed away this year.

A thank you isn’t enough for what you brought to this organisation: a Production Manager extraordinaire, a colleague, a friend, a mentor, a maker. You are in all that we do at Dublin Fringe Festival: your tenacity, your humour, your steadfastness and your complete dedication to art and artists. We celebrate you in every part of this festival.

To all the technicians, volunteers, patrons, partners, stakeholders, venues, funders, sponsors, friends and family who have joined us on our festival-making journey this year, the most heartfelt of thank yous.

Finally, our exceptional team: you weave magic as you guide, grow and wrangle this festival into being. Thank you for all you bring.

YOUR DUBLIN FRINGE FESTIVAL TEAM 2025

TEAM

Festival Director

Bee Sparks

Executive Director

Elissavet Chatzinota

Head of Marketing

Jennifer Breslin

Programme Manager

Katherine Murphy

Production Manager

Sarah Timmins

Programme Assistant

Clíona Malin

Marketing & Digital Comms O icer

Josh Gandharva

Studios Coordinator

Vanessa Byrne

Weft Studio Producer

Shannon Yee

Festival Intern

Daniel Kendrick

Box O ice Manager

Jack Quinn

Publicity and PR

A huge thanks to our Board of Directors; Áine Mulloy (Chair), Filipa

Allen, Julie Blakeney, Dan Colley, Luke Hardcastle, Oonagh O’Donovan, Miles Harrigan, Michael McDermott, Carly McKenna and Brian Melarkey.

Emeritus

Mary Dunphy, Dave Harland

Conleth Teevan

Volunteer Coordinator

Adriana Ribeiro

Technical Managers

Jason Lambert & Avram Rosewood

Bookkeeper

Anna Nolan

Creative Agency

bigO

Festival photographer

Simon Lazewski

Festival Videographer

Lost Boyz Studios

Artists

Ahmed, With Love., Clash At The Quays! II: LOKOMANIA (p.26)

Jessie Thompson, CRAWLER (p.25)

Shaqira Knightly, GENESIS (p.35)

Photography

Megan Doherty

Styling

Zeda The Architect

Make-Up & Hair

Tomek Welkier

Props

Gorilla Design Design

bigO

#

+353 Presents: The Revenger’s Tragedy p.17

7even p. 27

A

A Piano Meditation p. 51

Ailtireachtúil p. 69

ALIENS p. 12

Am I The A**hole? p. 34

AMSTERDAM p. 79

Anonn | The Other Side p. 74

Apocalypse How? p. 31

ATTENTION p. 77

B

Big p. 96

Birds p. 42

Brambles p. 76

Building Character p. 33

C

Change p. 54

CHOP p. 45

CIRQUE DU HONEYPOT p. 39

Clash At The Quays! II: LOKOMANIA p. 26

Comedy for

Witches: Full Moon

Special p. 89

Constriction p. 44

CRAWLER p. 25

Cult of Aerobics p. 36

D

Diary Of A Dublin Drag Diva p. 16

don’t copy me (copy) p. 50

Don’t Tell Dad

About Diana p. 75

dublinitgirl_vs_

dartlinediva: rap battle royale p. 32

E

Eras Tour: An Improvised History

Musical p. 100

F

Fry Me to the Moon p. 92

G

Galavanter: A Life on the Road p. 22

GENESIS p. 35

Glass Places p. 56

Good With Faces p. 72

H

He Dies in the End p. 80

Holdings p. 60

Homesick p. 73

Hungry Grass/ Stray Sod p. 61

I

I Want To Speak To Your Manager (How I Was Radicalised And Became...Karen) p. 86

IN A BAD WAY p. 83

Information

Toolbox p. 108

In Their Shoes: Live p. 21

ISL Deaf Translations

Project p. 15

Itch p. 46

L LAST GIG EVER!! p. 37

Lessons On Revolution p. 63

LIBYA! p. 19

M

Minaw Collective Jam p. 64

N

Nothing Personal p. 62

O

Octopus Children p. 10

OFFSPRING

(A Modern Frankenstein) p. 28

OISÍN: A MODERN RETELLING OF THE LEGEND OF OISÍN IN TÍR NA NÓG p. 14

P

Pea Dinneen: Raising Her Voice p. 13

PerfectionisTÁ p. 52

PERFORMING MEMORY p. 66

Perspective Refections p. 68

Pick ‘n’ Mix p. 106

Q Queens of Comedy p. 94

R

REVERB p. 105

Roots in Every Room p. 43

S

Scripted p. 108

Seón Simpson’s on a Tangent p. 48

Shane of Fools p. 95

Shredder p. 53

Sky/memory p. 49

SOAPSTAR p. 98

Stephen Jobs p. 88

T

TenderWRITE Big Plays & Shorts p. 104

TESTO p. 30

Thank God We’re Surrounded by Water p. 65

That’s Sooo Povo p. 20

The Chalice p. 81

The Cultured Culchie p. 90

The Deadline

Project p. 82

The Future is EGG p. 38

The Shape of Quiet Feelings p. 103

This-Topia p. 55

Train Man p. 91

V Variations for Two Disabled Bodies p. 18

W

What Are We Waiting For p. 67

Who’s a Big Boy? p. 87

Y

You Cry Weird p. 93

You’re So Special p. 78

THURSDAY 4 SEPTEMBER

Project

SATURDAY 6 SEPTEMBER

The Lir Academy - Studio 2

Civic Theatre - Main Space

SUNDAY 7 SEPTEMBER

TUESDAY 9 SEPTEMBER WEDNESDAY

Smock Alley Theatre - 1662

!P) The Lir Academy - Studio 2

Smock Alley - Patrick Sutton Studio

THURSDAY 11 SEPTEMBER

THE SHAPE OF QUIET FEELINGS dlr Mill Theatre - Maureen O’Hara

Smock Alley Theatre - 1662

Smock Alley Theatre - Boys’ School

Smock Alley - Patrick Sutton Studio

SUNDAY 14 SEPTEMBER

Project Arts Centre - Space Upstairs

MONDAY 15 SEPTEMBER

Smock Alley Theatre - 1662

Smock Alley Theatre - 1662

Smock Alley - Patrick Sutton Studio

Smock

FRIDAY 19 SEPTEMBER SATURDAY

The Lir Academy - Studio 2

RADICAL ART IS ONLY MADE WITH YOUR SUPPORT

DONATE NOW AND DIRECTLY INVEST IN THE FUTURE OF IRELAND’S CREATIVE TALENT TODAY.

WAYS TO SUPPORT US

Since 1995, we have supported over 70,000 artists, premiered 2,500+ shows, & welcomed nearly 750,000 audience members just like you! But we’re just getting started.

Your monthly or once-off donations help us provide artists free studio space, fund mentorships, residencies & bursaries, bolster accessibility with ISL and audio description and fuel boundary-pushing new work year round!

BECOME A FRINGE FRIEND

As a friend you will enjoy Early Bird Tickets, priority booking, exclusive updates, VIP invites, limited edition Dublin Fringe Festival merch and much more!

* Donations of €250+ qualify for tax relief — boosting your gift by up to 45% at no extra cost to you.

A huge thank you to our Fringe Friends: Ann-Marie Carroll, Kate Duke, Michelle De Forge, Kevin O’Riordan, Shannon Lacek, Deirdre Flaherty, Jess Majekodunmi, Rev Ultan Dillon, Christopher Sparks, Luke Hardcastle, Fiona Walsh, Brenda Harrington, Eamonn Moriarty

... and the generous supporters of 30 Years and Counting:

Miles Harrigan, Brian Melarkey, Brad Sharek, David Flynn, Oonagh O’Donovan, John Crowley, Aideen McQueen, Julie Blakeney, Aoife Ní Mhaoláin, Bob Hecklestein, Eamonn Moriarty, Shannon Lacek

...and to everyone helping us build the next 30 years.

SPONSORS & PARTNERS

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