The 33rd annual Minnesota Fringe Festival returns August 6–16, 2026 — eleven days of theater, comedy, dance, storytelling, and the gloriously unclassifiable, spread across more than a dozen stages in Minneapolis. It is the biggest performing-arts event of the Minnesota summer, and half the fun is the marathon of it: seeing three shows in an afternoon, comparing notes with strangers in line, and going back the next day to do it again.
Here is the thing about an eleven-day festival, though: a night-by-night hotel room gets expensive and impersonal fast. Whether you are a performer in town for tech week and the full run, a die-hard Fringer building a 10-show schedule, or just curious, a furnished studio in downtown Minneapolis makes a comfortable home base — and at Oaklands on 9th you can stay a night, a week, or the whole festival with no contract.
Fringe 2026 basics: dates, tickets, and how it works
The festival runs Thursday, August 6 through Sunday, August 16. Most shows are 60 minutes, scheduled in waves from early afternoon to late night, so it is easy to string several together. Regular tickets are $25 — or $20 with a Festival Button, which pays for itself if you see more than a few shows. Multi-show passes ($90 for 5 shows, $150 for 10) are good at any show, any venue, any day. In Fringe-managed venues, 75% of seats sell online in advance (up to 2.5 hours before curtain) and 25% are held for walk-up sales, and box offices are cashless. Full details are on the Fringe box office page.
Where the shows happen — and getting there from downtown
The 2026 venues cluster around Cedar-Riverside and the University of Minnesota’s West Bank — the Rarig Center’s three stages, the Southern Theater, Mixed Blood, Theatre in the Round, and the Barbara Barker Center for Dance — with independent stages scattered from Uptown to Northeast, including Bryant Lake Bowl and Strike Theater. From Oaklands on 9th at 215 South 9th Street, the West Bank cluster is just across the river: a five-minute drive or rideshare, an easy bike ride, or a quick trip on Metro Transit (check the trip planner for current routes). Between shows you are steps from Nicollet Mall, the Skyway, and downtown’s restaurants.
Why Fringe regulars book an extended stay
Eleven days is exactly the kind of stretch our studios were built for. Every unit is fully furnished with a full kitchen, so you can cook a real dinner between the 5:30 and the 8:30 show instead of surviving on concessions. WiFi, all utilities, heat, and free laundry are included; some units are pet friendly; and with Good, Better, and Best tiers there is a price point that leaves more in the budget for 10-show passes. Performers and crew love the month-to-month setup — arrive for rehearsals, stay through closing night, no lease required. Not sure what to bring? Our guide to what to pack for an extended stay covers what the studio already has. And if you arrive early, the Aquatennial wraps up downtown just before Fringe begins.
Tips for first-time Fringers
Buy tickets to buzzed-about shows online ahead of time — online sales close 2.5 hours before curtain, and popular shows can sell out their walk-up allotment within minutes of the box office opening 30 minutes before showtime. Want a preview of the lineup? Fringe hosts preview nights on July 27 and August 5 where artists get 3 minutes each to pitch their shows. Students with a valid ID can claim one of six free tickets at the first performance of any show in Fringe-managed venues. And browse the full 2026 show listings before you build your schedule.
Make downtown your Fringe home base
August 6–16 will be here before you know it, and festival-window dates fill up. Check availability and book your studio at Oaklands on 9th, or call us at (612) 314-5124 — we are happy to help you plan a stay that covers opening night to the final curtain. (Prefer a romantic B&B for a Fringe weekend? Our sister property, the 300 Clifton mansion, is a short hop from the West Bank venues too.)
Keep reading: while you’re here for the festival, take a minute to notice the building around you — here’s what makes Oaklands on 9th a Minneapolis landmark, and the history you can see during your stay.