Sydney Fringe Festival has unveiled its most extensive program yet, with new leadership under CEO Patrick Kennedy that aims to take the festival towards global relevance while still nurturing homegrown talent. From Parramatta to Lane Cove, Sydney Fringe Festival will transform the city into a cultural playground in September, with 460 shows made by 3,000 artists across 89 venues.
ArtsHub reached out to Kennedy for a blueprint of his plans, which are designed to ensure that the local event stays grounded in the city’s grassroots while also reaching international prominence.
‘Our global-facing strategy is grounded in amplifying the unique creative DNA of Sydney while also building scalable pathways for artists to export their work internationally. To do this, we focus on three key goals to elevate the global appeal,’ he tells ArtsHub.
‘Establishing the city as a launchpad for international touring: through our Made In Sydney and Off Broadway Hubs, we’re developing ambitious new Australian works with high production value that are “festival ready” for global Fringe circuits and position Sydney Fringe Festival as both a creative incubator of local talent and an export-ready marketplace.
‘Success in the past has seen artists like Sam Kissajukian and his work 300 Paintings go from Sydney to Adelaide, to Edinburgh and now to Broadway.’
Sydney Fringe: global ties
Another goal is to strengthen ties with global Fringe networks and cultural delegations, ‘to encourage more international emerging artists to Sydney each September and in turn, champion Sydney artists on world stages,’ Kennedy says, adding that he’s working closely with the state government’s tourism and events ecosystem to position the festival as a distinctive cultural destination.
In 2025 there will be four precincts set up for Sydney Fringe Festival, with ten genre-themed hubs within those precincts, including the Dance Hub, Off-Broadway Hub, Touring Hub, Cabaret Hub, Queer Hub and First Nations Hub.
This year there’s also a deliberate decision to platform even more underrepresented voices, with Sydney Fringe committed to ensuring equity in who gets to tell stories and where those stories are heard.
‘We have First Nations storytelling at the First Nations Hub and also a curated program at Bondi Pavilion showcasing d/Deaf, Disabled and Neurodiverse artists. It’s a significant step forward in placing marginalised narratives not just at the centre of the Fringe but in one of the world’s most recognisable places,’ says Kennedy.
With such an expansive program, he’s spoilt for choice but enthusiastically shares a few standout highlights.
‘We are delighted to be re-opening the doors to Eternity Playhouse. This is the place to see performances ready for the mainstage so expect bigger casts, bigger ambitions and higher production values.
‘My top pick here is Lewis Major’s Triptych – a critically acclaimed contemporary dance triple bill fresh from a world tour. I’d also like to give honourable mention to Kate Bush Unmoored, a lush, multimedia choral reimagining of her haunting music. I also highly recommend Wright & Grainger at The Rocks and Sh!t Theare: Or What’s Left Of Us at our Touring Hub – both highly acclaimed international fringe acts.
‘Ultimately our vision is for Sydney Fringe Festival to become the southern hemisphere’s most compelling platform for independent art, a place where global audiences and producers can discover the next generation of cultural innovators’ he concludes with a flourish.
Learn more about the Sydney Fringe Festival, which will take place 1-30 September 2025.
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