Winnipeg Fringe Festival: 2026 show reviews

Not sure what to see at this year's Winnipeg Fringe Theatre Festival? All of the Free Press’s reviews will be published here.  Find a show and click to read its review.

Fringe reviews #16: I need an extra show

Filthy Fakespeare, Just You and Me, The Review, Serious Comedy, This Is, You Are Happy, Real Grilfriend, Push Your Wheelchair

Fringe a reminder we’re all playwrights and performers in our own lives

On Wednesday evening, in slightly grey weather, I headed for Théâtre Cercle Molière in St. Boniface to take in my first two performances of this year’s Winnipeg Fringe Festival.

The shows could not have been more different. The first, Afeni, was a biographical monologue about Black Panther activist Afeni Shakur, performed by Edmonton’s Onika Henry, who was making her Winnipeg debut. The second, Absolutely Not a Cult, was a wacky dark comedy by a trio out of New York.

It was just the opening night of the 12-day Fringe — so no reviews to guide audiences yet — but already both venues were bustling. Dozens of fans had come to see one of the two shows, based on nothing more than a brief description in the festival program and a hunch.

A spirit of curiosity. A public willingness to embrace the new, the untested, and even the totally unknown. An excitement to go out and discover, with no guarantees of what you’ll find. If you pick a Fringe show at random, it could bore you to death, or it could change your life. These are the qualities that make Fringe great, both on the stage and in the seats.

Fringe reviews #15: Button-mashing mayhem

Babel, Chase Padgett, Dirk Darrow, The Glass Between Us, K-Tel Demon Hunters, Mr. Richard, Penny Ashton, Grant Canyon, Rocky Horror Show, Wisecracks for Weirdos

Level up your fringe experience

Before you press start on this year’s fringe, consult someone who has logged serious hours. Whether you are a first-time fringer or chasing another festival high score, these tips will help you play smarter.

Fringe reviews #14: You’ve earned extra lives

World Peace Through Humour, Emil Amok, Erika MacDonald, Evie & Alfie, The Late, Great Mormon Drag Queen, Mennonite Metamorphosis, Panic A Live Radio Musical, Qualia, Solovela, Your Boring Story

Fringe reviews #13: Achievement unlocked, levelling up

Black Fish, East of Berlin, Green Grab, Rowena Riddle, On Tidy Endings, Saving the Station, The Taming of the Shrew, Nat King Cole, Where We Fly From Hospital Beds

Fringe reviews #12: Game over? Not even close

52 STORIES 

Dave Morris

Théâtre Cercle Molière (Venue 3), to July 26

👾👾👾👾 ½

Fringe reviews #11: Our princess is in another theatre

'80s Commercials, Alexander Mantia's Zucchini Club, The Ballad of Isobel Gunn, Fission, Flunked, Fringe Family Fun Show, One More Time, A Savage Love Story, Story Story Lie, The (Un)Official (Un)Researched History, Unresolved.

Fringe reviews #10: Ready Player One

Andrew Silverwood, Bullheaded, Captain Ted, Eleanor's Story, Eleven Please, Finding Rem Lezar, Hayden Maines, Jimmy Hogg, Jon Bennett, Now Don't Get Upset.

Fringe reviews #9: Farming for fringe gold

Celine & Cher, The Commensality Project, Couch Surfing, False Profits, Martin Dockerty, The Game of Bluff, How Much Can you Change, Human$, The Mistress of Wholesome, Winnipeg is a Lie.

Fringe reviews #8: Experience points awarded

Another Side of Rice, The Crown Witness, The Cult of the Comfy Wizard, Dead Chef, Embarrassed Naked Female, Goose!, How Bono Saved My Life, Paper Fathers, Rumours in Motion, Site #57.

Fringe reviews #7: Quicksave before the next show

50% Nonverbal, Brilliantly Awkward, A Curated Exit, Four Hearts, A Kid Napping, A Life in 60 Minutes, Love is Blank, Lover Girl, Somewhere Up There, Tango After Midnight.

Fringe reviews #5: Power up!

Dan's Inferno, Great & Powerful Tim, Hapalochlaena, Jean-François, Letters, No Worries If Not, One Human Being Toy Story, Onwards!, Quintland, Meat Machine

Fringe reviews #6: Side quests highly recommended

The Golden Boys, A Magician, Our Father, The Power of Ignorance, Surprise!, Strange Things, Sweat, Tony Wrestles a Stranger, La Vie Parisienne, A Woman's Guide to Romance Novels.