Newy Gears Up For An Extraordinary 2025 Newcastle Fringe Festival
Image: Photos: I Got Shot By Charlie / Supplied NFF
In the heart of Newcastle, where the sea meets the city and creativity runs deep, a cultural storm is brewing. The 2025 Newcastle Fringe Festival is set to be the biggest and boldest yet, bringing ten electrifying days of theatre, music, comedy, cabaret, and more to the city’s buzzing arts scene.
Newcastle Fringe has always been a celebration of the bold, the brave, and the bizarre, but 2025 promises to be something extraordinary. This year’s program is a testament to the festival’s ever-growing stature, boasting a staggering 235 shows of 97 acts, and 612 artists performing at 15 venues over ten days, from Australia and beyond.
Founded by Phil Aughey in 2016, what began as an ambitious platform for local talent has evolved into an internationally recognised event that showcases the best of independent performance art.
With each passing year, it has grown larger and more dynamic, drawing visitors from across Australia and the world. NFF has evolved tremendously over the last nine years.
“The Newcastle Fringe Festival has experienced double digit growth in attendance every year since its inception, which is something to be proud of in a global and local environment where many festivals are not nearly as successful or being cancelled,” says Newcastle Fringe Chair Brooke Twyford.
But still, the festival retains its grassroots heart and remains true to the spirit of fringe, where you are just as likely to see an emerging artist as an award-winning celebrity trying out new material.
“It’s a true open access festival. This means that anyone can perform. Fringe is all about discovery… it’s a great way to see independent artists in action, supporting the creative community and encouraging the next generation of performers,” Newcastle Fringe Board Director & Vice-Chair Rebecca Fitzgibbons.
Madam Martha’s Parisian Cabaret a shining star of 2025
One of the shining stars of this year’s program is Madam Martha’s Parisian Cabaret (MMPC), an intoxicating blend of Moulin Rouge glamour and Berlin underground grit. This award-winning spectacle, crowned Best Cabaret at the 2024 Melbourne Fringe, promises a dazzling fusion of burlesque, drag, and live music as audiences are transported to a smoky, candlelit world of decadence and delight.
Plus, the show has homegrown roots:
“I grew up in Maitland, just outside of Newcastle,” says MMPC’s Lachlan Bartlett, aka Iva Rosebud. “I’ve always wanted to bring something special back home, to the place where it all began.”
Despite also having a strong international lineup, the festival prides itself on providing a platform for Australian and local artists, with a huge chunk of its program dedicated to homegrown talent. Whether it’s cutting-edge theatre, laugh-out-loud comedy, experimental dance, or soul-stirring live music—each event offers something fresh, unique, and unfiltered.
Some of the Aussie acts to nab tickets for include:
- musical satire Gladys – A Musical Affair about Gladys Berejiklian, which has been sold out everywhere it’s been staged
- Rob Carlton (Boy Swallows Universe) in five-star Adelaide Fringe hit Willing Participant
- the queer, camp, R-rated Barbie Burlesque by Adelaide’s Lyra la Belle
- Newcastle’s own seven-piece cabaret punk band Ruffians
There’s also a strong community and family element to Newcastle Fringe, with a diverse array of family-friendly events on the roster.
“While Newcastle Fringe has a reputation for bold and boundary-pushing performances, we’re also incredibly proud of the diverse family-friendly shows in our program. This year, we have an exciting lineup of children’s theatre, comedy, magic, science and interactive performances designed to spark curiosity and creativity in young minds,” says Fitzgibbons.
Why you should travel to Newcastle for Fringe
Newcastle Fringe offers something else: an experience. The city itself becomes a stage, with intimate venues scattered across the streets, inviting audiences to explore and discover. Newcastle’s charm lies in its effortless blend of coastal beauty and urban culture, making it the perfect setting for a festival that thrives on connection and creativity. Whether you’re a seasoned festival-goer or a curious first-timer, there’s something magical about wandering from one hidden venue to another, discovering unexpected gems along the way.
For those traveling from Sydney or elsewhere in Australia, Newcastle’s Fringe offers the perfect excuse for a getaway. Just a two-hour train ride from Sydney, the city boasts stunning beaches, a thriving dining scene, and a relaxed, welcoming vibe that makes it a dream destination.
With affordable ticket prices ranging from $10 to $43, Newcastle Fringe is an accessible, budget-friendly way to experience world-class performances in a city that knows how to put on a show.
The 2025 festival is shaping up to be something far beyond a simple celebration of the arts—it’s a space where intrepid, out-of-the-box ideas come to life, where audiences are challenged and entertained in equal measure, and where every performance, big or small, is infused with the electric energy of artistic expression.
So, whether you’re a lover of the avant-garde, a seeker of the spectacular, or simply someone looking for a reason to escape the everyday, Newcastle Fringe is calling.
Newy is ready. Are you?
