11 unmissable Dublin Fringe Festival events to book now

Taking place until Sunday 24 September, Dublin Fringe Festival is an annual celebration that adds colour and creativity to every corner of the capital.

A multidisciplinary arts festival that’s been devoted to talent development and artform development since 1995, Dublin Film Festival is a platform for new and emerging artists in Ireland to showcase their work and offers artists at every stage of their career an opportunity to challenge, subvert and invigorate their disciplines and practice.

If you haven’t already had an opportunity to head along to something from their incredibly stacked programme, we’ve rounded up some of our top picks taking place over the weekend and right up until the festival ends on Sunday 24 September.

Scaredy Fat

10-16 September, Smock Alley Theatre – Boys’ School

Marrying cabaret, theatre and comedy, Scaredy Fat by Colm McCready and Skelpielimmer invites us along to the movies with Scaredy as they poke fun at fat and queer representation in the horror genre, asking what it means to love a genre that doesn’t love you back. Stuffed with steamy recollections of Carrie and Candyman, Scaredy should be in ecstasy but evil horror host Count Calories keeps cutting in on the fun. It’s time for Scaredy to face their fears and stop being such a big scaredy fat.

Blue Thunder

11-16 & 18-23 September, 10-13 Thomas Street

Padraic Walsh’s award-winning immersive play — staged entirely within a minibus at a city centre location — examines what happens when the people who should be there for you have nothing left to give. It’s 3am and taxi-driver Brian is not taking any more fares. But then his drunk sons show up and one of them has a plan to do something horrendous, tonight. And we’re all invited along with him.

Are You Mad At Me? By Fiona Frawley

12-15 September, The International Bar

Fiona Frawley provides a comedic deep dive into one woman’s paranoia, how it aligns with the paranoia of generations of women before her, and why. Assuming everyone hates you is a fun, totally healthy way of going through life, and Fiona’s here to prove it. This is a stand-up comedy show about navigating life while suppressing that nagging feeling that everyone, including people you’ve never met, is mad at you.

Craic Den as Gaeilge

17 September, Whelan’s – Little Whelan’s

One of Dublin’s best comedy clubs is presenting an all-new Irish language line-up. Gathering top Irish comedians to stretch out their comedy chops through the medium of Irish. Expect big names, big laughs and big Duolingo vibes. From the person with the cúpla focail, those who are líofa lofa, to native speakers.

MOSH by Rachel Ní Bhraonáin

14-17 September, Project Arts Centre – Space Upstairs

With live music, real interviews, humour, heart and a whole lot of headbanging, five performers dive into the deeper meaning behind a misunderstood subculture. Is this violence or dancing? What are the rules? What do bacteria and moshers have in common? And why would anyone do it? This is the thrill of fighting, without the fear. This is a dance, a gig, a theatrical shove into the heart of the pit. This is a community connected through music and risk.

This Is You by LOOM

14-17 September, Smock Alley Theatre – Boys’ School

Blending modes of theatre, film, and performance where boundaries and definitions are erased in exciting new ways, This Is You follows Alice, a struggling actor, who is hired by a man to play the role of (someone’s) lifetime – agreeing to live in his house as his estranged daughter, Melissa. As the experiment plays out – exploring dynamics of father/daughter, boss/employee, youth/age, and men/women – the balance of power shifts in increasingly explosive ways.

You’re Needy (Sounds Frustrating)

Until 23 September, Pembroke Cottages (Meeting Point)

Carrie’s moved into her bathroom. She’s living on slim noodles, chopped parsley baths and Snail-Mucus-Whale-Placenta Face Masks™. Every week she’s visited by a volunteer hired to help her reintegrate into society. This week, it’s your turn. An offsite experience for one audience member touching on monotony, meditation, medication, and, of course, Gwyneth Paltrow. It’s time to peel off those cucumbers and take a long hard look at yourself.

EGG: The Proclamation of the Irish Republegg

16 September, National Stadium – Ringside Bar

Presented by Dublin’s spiciest queer collective, this is part-dazzling DIY cabaret, part-musical political rally for a new EGG-shaped Irish Republic. Join non-binary revolutionary Aoife O’Connor and the first transgender member of Cumann na mBan Pea Dinneen, plus a glittering line-up of movers, shakers and makers offering liberation through song, dance, comedy, drag and more. In the name of cabaret, Ireland through EGG summons her queerest children to her flag to slay for her freedom.

RETCH by Leanne Bickerdike

21-23 September, Bewley’s Café Theatre

Set in Dublin in the mid 90s, this is an intensive and fast-paced, physical theatre one-woman show. Exploring the world through the eyes of an angry, broke, young woman who is grief stricken after the death of her mother and unable to communicate with her father. After she meets a fella at a bus stop, her decision-making shifts, but is it for better or for worse? From demons, da’s and disco biscuits, she begins to evolve and understand the world around her.

Songs of Theys

20-24 September, Dublin Castle – Chapel Royal

Say goodbye to the gender binary, and hello to non-binary finary as you join a choir of theyngels and sing along to your favourite queer hymns, all while worshipping our Theylord Shesus Christ. This show doesn’t just blur the lines between mass and a gay bar, it sticks them in a blender and serves the audience a delicious smoothie that leaves them feeling revitalised, energised and ready to dismantle the patriarchy.

Tony Cantwell’s Sketch Show

23 September, Smock Alley Theatre

Step into the whimsical world of Tony Cantwell. Renowned for his stand-up comedy, he returns to his first love with a night dedicated solely to sketch comedy. Prepare to be captivated by a medley of music, surreal sketches, cinematic moments, and puppets. With special appearances from familiar faces, this extravaganza promises an unforgettable evening of trippy laughter.

Take a look at the full programme of events on the Dublin Fringe Festival website.