The countdown to Gothenburg Fringe 2026 picks up pace as we reach our eighth artist reveal of 10. And as we continue to bring you shows from our regular programme on 28 August until 6 September, free tickets for three of our special events have just been released.
Gothenburg Fringe 2026 begins with an open invitation to join us at Stora Tullhuset for the opening evening of our festival. This year’s opening is built around the theme Embrace the Unknown. Audiences are invited to move through the building as you please, choosing your own Fringe adventure by selecting different paths, each containing different ‘living stations’ that transform the site into an immersive landscape of curiosity, surprise, and reflection for artists and audiences alike. Get your tickets here.
Following the opening, in the very same location, is our 1st Preview Night. The preview night is the ideal way to get into the Fringe spirit, enjoying a taste of what is to come in a vibrant environment at Stora Tullhuset as artists get just three minutes each to tease their work and convince you to see their show. And once again, we’ll have a 2nd Preview Night on Tuesday 1 September, which promises to be a special one as a flood of new artists get into town for the second half of the festival.
Ticket sales are now well underway and for the first time, we’re selling Festival Passes, bundles of 3, 6 and 10-show passes at brilliant discounts. There is limited availability, so get your hands on them here and take a chance on some of the shows listed below.
Pascol – Vocal Performance
by Pascol Project (England)
Pascol is a participatory vocal and movement performance exploring what human connection can look like in an increasingly digital and AI-mediated world.
Created by a women-led ensemble with diverse cultural backgrounds, Pascol brings together vocal improvisation, movement, storytelling and participatory art. Each performance begins with an invitation: audience members are welcome to share a personal story, memory or moment from their lives. In response, the ensemble listens, moves and sings together, transforming these stories into spontaneous compositions using only voices and bodies.
There are no instruments, no script and no digital enhancement. Every rhythm, harmony and movement is created live in the room. In a culture shaped by algorithms, digital fatigue and growing social fragmentation, Pascol creates space for collective imagination and radical human presence. Every performance is created collectively in real time and exists only once: fleeting, intimate and deeply human.
Who will love this show?
Pascol attracts people who seek meaningful, emotional, and participatory experiences. It resonates with audiences interested in experimental performance, vocal improvisation, and intimate formats that invite reflection and connection. We aim to reach curious, emotionally engaged audiences who look for more than entertainment, people who value listening, sincerity, and community.
Lökkvinnan
by Céline Marcault (Sweden)
En humoristisk, vild, och eventuellt relaterbar föreställning.
Jeanette, 48 år, sitter inlåst för att ha gjort fel. Nu har hon fått i uppgift att ge tillbaka till samhället genom att hålla ett motiverande samtal gällande människans universella emotionella grundpelare – stress, skam, skuld och självrannsakan. Via ett lekfullt uttryck gestaltas de lager vi bär omkring på.
Genom sång, humor och smärta får publiken följa en kvinna som försöker förstå vem hon är – bortom barnet, modern, idealet och kraven från samhället. I mötet med publiken skapas en känsla av att vad som helst kan hända, och kanske kan föreställningen så ett litet frö av inspiration till att leva ett steg närmare den man är längst in.
“NU HÖRNI, nu ska vi prata om skuld! Ra-taa-da-da-da-daaaa tjo! Ra-ta-da-daa-da-daaaa!
NUMMER 8. ”Hinner inte” med att träffa familj och vänner. Här står hinner inom citationstecken, om ni fattar vad jag menar… men, det spelar ingen roll att jag varken orkar, vill eller har tid. Nu blir det fest och jag har lagat maten! Ra-taa-da-da-da-daaaa tjo!”
Seaglass & Featherstone: Office of Obscenity
by Gabriel Featherstone and Sheena Mackenzie (Scotland)
“An interesting mix of utter fantasy, inane nonsense and a steady drip of insanity that makes for a memorable (and rather funny) show. Weird, in all senses of the word.” – Starburst Magazine
“Rude and horny and messy, but also very kind; a great strength”. – Cook’d & Bomb’d
A sexy and funny office-themed interactive cabaret game show presented by Scotland’s most chaotic burlesque/comedy double act!
Flesh Blob Johnny and Meat Cube Diana are both desperate to be employed by The Office of The Business Company, but there’s only one position available! Win prizes and treats by guiding one of these hopeful applicants through a series of absurd job interview tasks.
Will you guide your character to victory, or will their dream of being allowed to work in a normal office be crushed in front of you?
Featuring dangerously catchy original songs, avant-garde burlesque, and some incredibly weird mutants.
They will do two nights of this show at Folkteatern on 4 and 5 September, but before that, Gabe will perform Robocop vs The Terminator vs Gabriel Featherstone for one night only on 2 September.
Voices of Istanbul II – presented by Dansfilmfestivalen Satellite
by Dansfilmfestivalen/Benedikte Esperi (Sweden/Türkiye)
Dansfilmfestivalen Satellite presents VOICES OF ISTANBUL II – a curated programme of short films within the genre of dance for screen, by artists based in Gothenburg and Istanbul. The programme continues VOICES OF ISTANBUL, presented at 3:e Våningen in March 2026, and is the result of a multi-year artistic exchange between the two cities.
The exchange has developed through Dance Across Borders (DAB) at 3:e Våningen, the Swedish Arts Grants Committee’s dance residency in Istanbul, and an ongoing collaboration with Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University, where the festival presented a satellite screening in June 2026 as part of Dance Across Borders – Gothenburg meets Istanbul.
The Satellite programme brings films from the annual Dansfilmfestivalen in Gothenburg to new environments, places and spaces. The works presented are by and with leading Swedish and international dance filmmakers, where body and movement, together with the camera, act as narrators in dialogue with their audience.
The Dance Film Festival was founded by Benedikte Esperi in Gothenburg and has quickly established itself both nationally and internationally. The intention is to empower opportunities for choreographers, dancers, and filmmakers who produce dance films to meet their audience in several contexts.
Sit-up comedy shows
by Sit-up Comedy (Sweden)
Sit-up comedy presents a series of five shows at Gothenburg Fringe 2026, taking place at Potatisen.
This year’s focus is on local comedians with performances from Martin Kranz and Kim Reteike in Swedish, while the preview comedy night and open mic give a chance for visiting artists to join the fun and share the stage with the local comedy community.
Martin Kranz: Min Tur Nu
Preview comedy night
Kim Reteike: Är det på riktigt?
Middle Age Arab in Europe
English Stand-up Comedy Open Mic
Don Quixote for all ages
by Skottes Musikteater (Sweden)
A farcical and musical show about the romantic dreamer and self-appointed Knight, Don Quixote. By his side is the realist, down-to-earth squire, Sancho Panza.
The scenography of the show is in itself a work of art. It consists of a theatrical machine with countless mini-stages, which are revealed through twists, turns and pulleys.
Ove Andersson and Mats Jadin play all the parts, perform all the musical numbers and work the theatre machine expertly in this family-friendly show.
