HAMILTON FRINGE FESTIVAL
The Hamilton Fringe Festival returns for its 21st year, running July 16-27, 2025.
The festival features over 50 companies and 350+ performances taking place in historic venues across town.
In 2024, over 17,500 theatregoers attended from all over Canada, the US, and beyond. Hamilton Fringe showcases a diverse lineup of sketch comedy, improv, theatre, dance, puppetry, magic, musicals, and more! Tickets are an affordable $14+ fee (or less) with a one-time purchase of a Fringe Benefits Button ($5).
STEEL CITY REVIEWS SCHEDULE FOR FRINGE 2025
ALL REVIEWS WILL BE POSTED BY JULY 23
Thursday July 17 (Staircase):
Liz: A Traumatic Comedy - Elaine Mae (9M Theatre) - 6:00pm
Pookamhura Mistress of B-Roll - Staircase Main (Theatre Erebus) - 8:30pm
Waiting for* Godot. *, Waiting for, Waiting for - Staircase Main (Breadbox Theatre) - 10:15pm
Friday July 18 (HTI):
Ostrich Park (The Plot Hole Company)- 6:30pm
The Damage Done (Willson Entertainment Productions)- 8:00pm
Moving In (Moving In Productions)- 9:30pm
Saturday July 19 (THEATRE AQUARIUS AND MILLS HARDWARE):
The Pole Shebang - Aquarius (AJL Productions) - 12:15pm
Crane Girl - Aquarius (Falling Iguana Theatre) - 1:45pm
The Fruits that Rot in our Bellies - Aquarius (Femmepire) -4:45pm
A Question of Character - Mills (Minmar Gaslight) - 6:30pm
Mind The Gaps - Mills (Nathan Lise) - 8:30pm
The Heterosexuals - Mills (Redheaded Stepchild Productions) - 10:00pm
Sunday July 20 (Westdale):
500 Doubloons (Friendly Bear Theatre)- 12:00pm
The Fortune Teller (Artword Theatre)- 1:30pm
Hope in Hot Times (Play Play Clown Theatre)- 3:00pm
Gaumukhi (Cow) (The Ghare-Baire Collective) - 5:30pm
Meat Market (Meat Market Collective)- 7:30pm
Raccacloon (Playdough Productions) - 9:00pm
MONDAY JULY 21
Men Love Horsies: the Musical (Devin Bateson)
Unsolicited: Good Advice Gone Dad (Kristi Boulton)
What If ? Improvising Your Alternate Universe (Watson Productions)
Tuesday July 22 (pLAYERS’ GUILD)
Sister Sophia Kicks the Habit (The Universe Over 60) - 6:00pm
A Gentleman's Murder (Reactor Theatre) - 7:30pm
REVIEW: OBJECT OF STRANGENESS
Through his humour, Gavin Stephens navigates the complexities of race, culture, and societal change, searching for where he truly belongs…
REVIEW: NOOK AND CRANNY: TWIN DETECTIVES
Estranged twins and former kid-detectives reunite as adults to solve the murder of the century.
REVIEW: ABD WITH MARK THE C
Mark Cassidy's heart-warming memoir of growing up in small-town Ontario motels.
REVIEW: UNDER THE COVER
Using dance theatre to convey the experience of social anxiety Under the Cover raises further awareness on mental health…
REVIEW: COMMEDIA DELLE STELLE
What would it be like if Star Trek was written 600 years earlier? How would a humble troupe of street performers create the stories of one of the most beloved TV shows of all time?
REVIEW: THE HATERS TOUR
Sam and Surer are narcissistic sensitivity trainers that think they're changing hearts and minds but come to realize is the material their teaching challenges who they are as people…
REVIEW: LULU
The time has come for Lulu to embark on an epic trial of a lifetime. As she encounters folklore creatures and learns many lessons, how much of herself will she come to know?
REVIEW: ARTS AND CRAFTS FOR GROWN UPS (SPOILER FREE)
With the help of some LEGO bricks, a deck of cards, and a table full of craft materials, Ben sets off on a journey to find the meaning of “real” magic.
REVIEW: GRINGAS
A mystical and hilarious bi-lingual coming-of-age story that makes you wonder what it means to be Latina-Canadian today.
1st Place Winner: Hamilton Fringe New Play Contest
REVIEW: THE POPPY WHORER PICTURE SHOW
A live-action parody of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, but this time, it’s a time warp informed from a trans perspective.
REVIEW: THREE STRIKES, YOU'RE DEAD!
Ronnie Boozer is a baseball superstar who has forgotten how to play. Will it take murder to discover why?
REVIEW: MORE MISSING EPISODES
Nathan Lise tries to recall stories of missed potential, lost causes, and failure…
REVIEW: SPOOK SHOW (SPOILER FREE)
A new show by award winning Illusionist Nick Wallace that combines ghost stories, magic and illusions, elements of turn-of-the-century spook shows, and themes of fading memory and death (you know, a feel good show).
REVIEW: THINGS ARE FINE ACTUALLY
Laugh along with veteran Fringe performer Neil McArthur as he navigates surveillance capitalism, parenthood, and the pressure to be five stars at everything, all the time.
REVIEW: THE UNDERWEAR FAIRY (AND OTHER LOVE STORIES)
Join award-winning comedian & storyteller, Kristi Boulton, on a journey through embarrassing, delightful, occasionally heartbreaking true stories, including the mystery that 100k+ TikTok sleuths couldn't solve.
REVIEW: ONE BRIEF SHINING MOMENT
If you had the opportunity to go back in time, would you take it?
REVIEW: STATIONARY
A coming-of-(middle) age romantic comedy about two strangers in dead-end relationships who find an unlikely friendship when their gym schedules sync up.
REVIEW: GRAEMAZING: LEVEL 7 WIZARD (SPOILER FREE)
Prepare to get nostalgic with magic and mind experiments using sports cards, comic books and videotapes…
PREVIEWS: HAMILTON FRINGE 2024
Steel City Reviews is thrilled to celebrate 20 years of Hamilton Fringe and has been working with several of the participants this year to provide audiences with mini sneak previews of their upcoming shows. Read on for more details!
