The Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival descends on the heart of Old Strathcona (and elsewhere in the city) from Aug. 13 to 23, with 209 productions across 37 venues, plus outdoor performances, food, and beer. It can be overwhelming for even the most seasoned Fringer, so here are some tips for making the most of the festival.
The shows are organized into 14 genres, including comedy, drama, clown, magic, and storytelling. Looking for recommendations and reviews? Liz Nicholls has already previewed some shows and will be reviewing many more as the festival swings into action. Troy Pavlek offers reviews and a thorough online database showing how close shows are to selling out. The festival also crowdsources reviews online, giving nearly every production a chance to get some audience feedback. You can also just visit the Fringe grounds — you are guaranteed to be visited by a performer pitching their show sooner than you're swatting away a mosquito.
Thank you to our sponsors for helping to make our work possible:
Music
Singer-songwriter Mariel Buckley spoke to Vish Khanna on the Kreative Kontrol podcast about her album Strange Trip Ahead, her 2026 Juno Award for Contemporary Roots Album of the Year, and her connection to Edmonton, including writing songs in the city and playing the Edmonton Folk Music Festival.
Members of VRiliAN — all three of whom are named Ryan — shared the punk band's origins, SNFU-influenced sound, and debut show in an interview with Altyeg Music Magazine.
The Edmonton Folk Music Festival drew an estimated 100,000 people over four days at Gallagher Park, despite soggy grounds after record rainfall. Producer Terry Wickham praised the site crew as "the real heroes of the weekend" for transforming muddy terrain into a functioning festival in time for headliners such as Arrested Development, Cat Power, Of Monsters and Men, and Nathaniel Rateliff.
AC/DC drew more than 50,000 fans to a sold-out concert at Commonwealth Stadium on Aug. 9. Stadium director Heather Seutter said these mega stadium tours "have an incredible impact on our city."
Visual arts
Poet and musician Anna Marie Sewell wrote poetry, composed music, and edited prose in response to visual artwork by Evelyn Martin, Brian Martin, and Margaret Nazon for the Our Precious Night Sky exhibition at the McMullen Gallery inside the University of Alberta Hospital. The exhibition runs until Sept. 27. The show includes a public engagement piece in which visitors are invited to write their own memories of the night sky.
Lori Frank spoke to Edify about painting beloved city locations — from river valley viewpoints to arts venues. She said her depiction of the Sidetrack Cafe went viral in February, flooding her social media with Edmontonians' memories of the live music and comedy venue that closed in 2007.
NAIT landscape architectural technology graduate Matt Sloan oversaw the development of O-day'min Park, a $48.6-million, 4.5-acre downtown Edmonton park that transformed surface parking lots along 107 Street into green space, gathering areas, and public art. The park opened in November 2025 and received a national award in June.
St. Albert artist Leah Gravells is showcasing large-scale landscape quilts made from batik fabric in The Sky's the Limit at the Art Gallery of St. Albert until Oct. 31. Gravells builds Alberta skies and fields from hundreds of narrow fabric strips — only a quarter-inch of each strip shows at a time — creating colours she may never be able to replicate.
Turn it up!
Fringe sounds good! Catch 16 free concerts in ATB Park featuring an electrifying lineup of local and touring talent. The free Fringe Music Series brings big sounds, live energy, and unforgettable experiences to the heart of Old Strathcona. (Pictured: Tymisha Harris)
The economic development impact of the Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival is massive, but perhaps "the most overlooked" in the city, argued Bernadette Geronazzo of the Fabbrici Foundation for the Arts. The Fringe brings more than 800,000 people to Old Strathcona; generates $20 million in local impact in 11 days; and garnered $1.5 million in artist revenue last year — $800,000 of which stayed in Alberta. "Despite being recognized internationally by travel publications … as a destination worth travelling for, public funding has remained stagnant for nearly a decade while operating costs continue to rise," she wrote. "That is why this conversation about arts investment matters beyond the arts sector."
Theatre Network's first season with artistic director Jenna Rodgers is called The Roxy Remixed and features three shows. The lineup includes the musical OH, ANNE! in a co-presentation with Carter-Ryan Theatre, a new panto called Jack and the Beanstalk from Theatre Yes, and Bella Luz, a co-production between SkirtsAfire and Ruby Slippers Productions. "This is me trying to leverage partnerships and create connections, and relationships, and have some funding in place we can use to have the biggest impact," Rodgers told Liz Nicholls.
Teatro Live! artistic director Farren Timoteo announced the company's 45th anniversary season featuring four comedies, including a revival of Stewart Lemoine's The Glittering Heart and the company's Canadian professional premiere of Sandy Rustin's The Cottage. Timoteo said season subscriptions are up 30% and casual ticket sales are up 48%, saying "We're having a Moment."
Filip Fufezan, who got his acting start with Festival Players in Sherwood Park, made his television debut in Elle, a Prime Video series and Legally Blonde prequel set in 1990s Seattle.
Books and publishing
Sen. Kristopher Wells has made his personal collection of more than 300 2SLGBTQ+ picture books publicly available through a partnership with IBBY Canada, which describes it as the largest collection of its kind in the world. Titled Reading with Pride: Stories for Everyone, the collection is also available online through Edmonton Public Library, with the physical books on display at Carleton University during IBBY's 40th World Congress in Ottawa.
The board of the St. Albert Public Library has estimated it will cost about $100,000 in 2027 to comply with the UCP government's Bill 28, which requires certain books to be held in secured storage areas. Former library CEO Peter Bailey, now a senior fellow at the Centre for Free Expression at Toronto Metropolitan University, said most Alberta libraries appear to be opting for compliance rather than mounting a constitutional challenge, which he considered disappointing. "Freedom of expression is at the core of what libraries are," Bailey told David Climenhaga of AlbertaPolitics.ca
Edmonton Screen is returning to gamescom as Canada's only coordinated trade delegation with a dedicated Indie Hall booth. The gathering is the world's largest video game convention, taking place Aug. 26 to 30 in Cologne, Germany. Five Edmonton indie studios — Lucid Rain Studios, Caldera Interactive, COG Studios, Olivenaut, and Daisy Chain Games — will showcase original games through the Summit Push Program.
Fragapalooza, Alberta's long-running non-profit gaming event, celebrated its 30th anniversary with a four-day LAN party at the Leduc Recreation Centre. The event, which began in 1997 at what is now the Alberta Aviation Museum, reached nearly 1,000 attendees at its 2008 peak — Canada's largest-ever LAN party. Organizers expected roughly 400 people this year, with virtual participation available for those who couldn't attend in person.
More headlines
Arts on the Ave has acquired the land needed to build ArtsCommon 118, a long-planned creative hub at 9131 118 Avenue NW — a vacant lot that has sat empty for years. Executive director Christy Morin called it "a game-changer project for the Alberta Avenue neighbourhoods" and said the multi-use hub is designed to be a space where artists can work, live, show artwork, and build community.
Following the permanent closure of Yellowknife's Capitol Theatre, film fans have been travelling to Edmonton to catch summer blockbusters, with one person spending roughly $1,500 on flights, hotels, and concessions to see three films. A grassroots film club has been hosting free monthly screenings at the Yellowknife Public Library to help fill the void.
Uplifting the legacies and livelihoods of our clients and the communities where we serve and live, is what gets ATB's team members out of bed in the morning. And after 80-plus years worth of mornings, they're still pursuing that mission with a brand of enthusiasm and authenticity you can only experience with ATB.
