Next Stage Theatre Festival Opens Today

The 2018 festival kicks off the 30th year of the Toronto Fringe. To celebrate, join us on Saturday, January 13 for a special fundraiser. Martin Dockery will perform his hit one-man-show Delirium at 10:30pm in the Factory Theatre Mainspace. This ridiculous, true story of a search for meaning amidst love, loss, and Monarch butterflies sold out its run at the 2017 summer festival. Free beer tastings and snacks will be available in the heated Steam Whistle beer tent before the show, starting at 9:00pm.Commemorative mugs will also be for sale in the tent.

Next Stage 2018 is on track to be one of the best selling winter festivals, despite the bitterly cold Toronto weather. The buzz around shows likeRumspringa Break!, JONNO, and Good Morning, Viet Mom are drawing culture lovers from all over the GTA out of their houses and into the theatre. July 2017's Toronto Fringe was the highest selling festival of our 30-year history, with almost 70,000 tickets sold, and we could see another record-breaking event this January.

This Next Stage also marks the first festival for the new management team of the Toronto Fringe. Lucy Eveleigh became the Executive Director in October 2017, after five years as the Managing Director. She is joined by Laura Paduch as the new Managing Director. Laura was previously the General Manager of Toronto indie theatre companies fu-GEN Theatre Company and ARC, where she advanced the inaugural joint management initiative. They are both thrilled to serve the tremendous Fringe community in their new roles.

About Next Stage

The Next Stage Theatre Festival is the premiere winter theatre event in the city. Produced by the Toronto Fringe, Next Stage is a platform for past Fringe artists to take their ground-breaking work to the next level, and a gathering place for discerning culture lovers in Toronto.

Tickets

$15 - Mainspace and Studio shows

$10 - Antechamber shows

Buy online, by phone at 416-966-1062 ext. 0, or in person at the venue starting one hour before the first show of the day. Advance sales online or by phone are subject to a $2 per order fee.

Passes

$48 - 4-Play Pass (+$2 advance order fee)

Valid for four tickets, redeemable in advance online, by phone, or at the door. Maximum of one ticket per performance. Non-transferable. Savings of up to $12.

$90 - 8-Play Pass (+$2 advance order fee)

Valid for eight tickets, redeemable in advance online, by phone, or at the door. Maximum of two tickets per performance, per pass. Savings of up to $30.

Venue

Factory Theatre

125 Bathurst Street, Toronto

Schedule

View the full Next Stage show schedule here.

Find listings for all ten Next Stage shows here.

2026 Theater Fans' Choice Awards - Live Stats

Best Featured Performer in a Musical - Top 3

1. Ali Louis Bourzgui - The Lost Boys, A New Musical

18.9% of votes

2. Bryce Pinkham - Chess

9.6% of votes

3. Ben Levi Ross - Ragtime

6.3% of votes

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