About Melbourne Fringe
Victoria's home for independent art. All welcome. Always.Melbourne Fringe democratises the arts. We have a vision of cultural democracy – empowering anyone to realise their right to creative expression.
We champion discovery and experimentation, supporting the development and presentation of artworks by, with and for the people of Melbourne. We run the annual Melbourne Fringe Festival, the year-round venue Fringe Common Rooms at Trades Hall, and a range of arts sector leadership programs that uplift and mobilise our community.
We started life in 1982 as the Fringe Art Network, and now in our 41st year (we look great for our age, don’t you think?) we remain committed to our roots – a collaborative, encouraging, representing and uniting of artists of all disciplines. Over four decades we have matured to become one of our state’s most significant and adventurous arts organisations. We usher artists forward from the fringes, champion big new ideas and help new work find its audience. We work year-round as educators, promoters, advocates, and creators. We are supporters, we are challengers, we rock the boat and we question the status quo. And we love a cheeky party or two.
Read more about where we’ve been and what we’ve done in our History of Melbourne Fringe.
About the Melbourne Fringe Festival
Melbourne Fringe Festival is Victoria’s longest-running multi-arts festival, platforming the vital voices of our brightest artistic talent for 43 years. Its inclusive programs platform anyone with an artistic project to share, particularly working to platform First Nations artists, d/Deaf and Disabled creatives, queer storytellers, emerging youth perspectives, and international risk-takers. It offers a focused snapshot of urgent, ambitious art being made right now. Melbourne Fringe Festival returns from 30 September–19 October 2025 with a program of 500+ exciting, boundary-pushing arts events.
The Melbourne Fringe Festival is Open Access – that means that anyone with something to say is invited to come say it under our umbrella. With 450+ events presented annually by Melbourne’s emerging and independent artistic talent across every possible artform, our Open Program is a come-one-come-all bounty of independently created and produced events that take over theatres, pubs, lounge rooms, shopfronts, alleyways and community halls right across the city.
Discover what Melbourne's most exciting independent artists, thinkers and creative troublemakers have to say in this extraordinary display of creativity that speaks to Melbourne Fringe's vision of cultural democracy — empowering anyone to realise their right to creative expression.
Our Open Access Program champions discovery and experimentation, ushers forward voices from the margins and breaks down barriers to access so more people from more communities can share in the vibrant celebration of culture that is Melbourne Fringe.
As well as our diverse Open Program, Melbourne Fringe produces a Curated Program that spotlights ambitious artistic projects to capture Melbourne's imagination.
The Festival Hub at Trades Hall is the epicentre of our Festival and features a bold program of events across all artforms. Our legendary Club Fringe is our meeting place, our town hall, the social heart of the Festival and a place for our community to gather for some eye-opening performances.
May we have the envelope, please? 36 Category, Professional Development, Touring and Special awards are chosen each year by a panel of over 120 industry judges and presented at our glittering Fringe Awards ceremony.
Participation in Melbourne Fringe’s programs is guided by two key principles: Freedom of Expression and Ensuring Community Safety. You can review our Community Guidelines here.
Please see a detailed breakdown of information about Fringe Programmed Venue Hire and Festival fees in this information pack.
FRINGE FORWARD
Fringe Forward is how we describe Melbourne Fringe's year-round sector leadership work. It's all the ways we support the artists in the Festival, and how we're building a stronger, more sustainable independent arts sector more broadly. Read more on our Fringe Forward page.