Indyfringe Festival Celebrates 20 Years With Nearly 70 Shows, Over 500 Artists, And More

The 20th Anniversary IndyFringe Festival, presented by Everwise Credit Union, will return to Indianapolis from August 14–24, 2025, with its biggest celebration yet. Featuring nearly 70 shows and over 500 artists from around the world, this year’s festival offers a mix of bold, affordable, and genre-spanning performances across six venues, plus a full slate of free community events including live busking, late-night parties, and the highly anticipated “Fringe-a-palooza” anniversary celebration on Sunday, August 17.

Since its founding in 2005, IndyFringe has brought more than 217,000 visitors to the Mass Ave Cultural Arts District and returned over $2.5 million to artists. Thanks to Everwise Credit Union’s sponsorship, 70% of all box office revenue goes directly to participating artists. In 2025, over 61% of acts will be from Indiana, with 33% produced by BIPOC creatives. Nearly half of this year’s shows are from first-time producers.

Festival Highlights

• 69 shows across 245 performances, with styles ranging from ballet to stand-up, Bollywood to clowning, immersive theater, puppetry, and magic

• Free community events, including street performers, karaoke, and tarot readings

• Fringe-a-palooza, a one-day celebration on Sunday, August 17 from 11:30am–6:00pm with live music, local vendors, and pop-up performances

• New venues, including the return of The Athenaeum Basile Theatre and a new partnership with VisionLoft Events (Venue #6 at 235 N. Delaware)

What’s New in 2025

• Buskers Every Weekend: From Friday to Sunday, audiences will enjoy live performances along Massachusetts Avenue while moving between venues — including breakdancing, hand-pan musicians, and handmade curse & blessing writers.

• The Flanner Fringe Lab: Seven original shows from this year’s inaugural cohort, plus a featured performance from program lead Dr. Austin Dean Ashford. New works include Dis Bitter Poetry, The Big Book Signing, Universe City, Psalm 27 Club, A Place for Plant People, and Ain’t But a Few of Us Left.

• One-Night-Only Events:

  • Festival Preview Night on Wednesday, August 13, featuring free 2-minute previews from most acts

  • Going… Going… Gone, the interactive auction comedy by Lou Harry and John Thomas (Thursday, August 14 at 9:30 PM)

Indianapolis Awards - Live Stats

Best Musical - Top 3

1. XANADU (Red Barn Summer Theatre)

18.9% of votes

2. BE MORE CHILL (Eclipse Theatre Co)

9.5% of votes

3. CAROLINE, OR CHANGE (Footlite Musicals)

7.4% of votes

Vote Now!