On sale now — a festival that arrives sweating, shimmering and absolutely unafraid.
Summerhall has dropped the last 30 titles of its 2026 Fringe programme, and the headline is almost too on‑the‑nose: the UK’s first purpose‑built theatre sauna will take over the back courtyard in August. An 80‑seat heat chamber built for performance — not wellness influencers — and programmed with Aufguss masters, theatre, literature, music and the sort of oddball happenings that only Summerhall would dare to stage. It’s the kind of idea that sounds like a joke until you realise they’ve actually built it.
The announcement folds these sauna happenings into a wider programme that now totals 72 shows, with half of them created by international artists. The tone is unmistakably Summerhall: bold, political, mischievous, and occasionally unhinged in the best possible way.
Kismet (قسمت) — Shaparak Khorsandi
Khorsandi brings a work‑in‑progress staging of her debut play, drawn from the real history of her Iranian family after the 1979 Revolution. The piece grows out of her novel Nina’s Not Okay and features live music by Jean Delkhaste (Smiling Beth). It’s billed as personal, diasporic and musically alive — a shift from stand‑up into something more theatrical and emotionally rooted.
Turn Your Fucking Phones Off — Hannah Maxwell
Maxwell returns after Nan, Me & Barbara Pravi and BABYFLEAREINDEERBAG, this time with an autobiographical dive into digital toxicity, misinformation and the way our devices quietly rewire us. With dramaturgy from Ursula Martinez and Rachel Mars, it promises to be playful, self‑aware and prickly in all the right places.
ROLEPLAY — Francesca Moody Productions & Global Creatures
A new NSFW one‑woman show from Hannah Reilly (The Deb), directed by Paige Rattray (Fangirls). It tackles sex, feminism‑as‑brand, and the performance of womanhood in the algorithmic age. Given the producers (Fleabag, Baby Reindeer; Moulin Rouge! The Musical), expect polish, bite and a certain theatrical swagger.
ArounD the WorlD in 80 ToyS — Thaddeus McWhinnie Phillips
Phillips — a Fringe legend with a taste for cinematic magic — returns with a Méliès‑inspired blend of micro‑cinema, illusion and puppetry. The show is described as a “haunting and touching homage to the movies,” which fits his long‑standing interest in borderlands, travel and the mechanics of storytelling.
THE PLOT — theatregoose
Emma Howlett’s company (Aether; Sisters Three; Her Green Hell) premieres a new play about the Gunpowder Plot. Expect reinvention, rebellion and a fascination with how stories get told and retold. theatregoose have built a reputation for atmospheric, tightly directed work; this looks like a continuation of that streak.
The Sauna Theatre Programme
The sauna itself is a collaboration between director James Grieve and designer Lucy Osborne, the duo behind Paines Plough’s Roundabout. They’re launching their new venture — Sauna Sessions Arts Club — on the very ground where Roundabout first stood in 2014.
Inside the heat:
- Morning raves
- Mysteries of the Picts
- Nick Cassenbaum’s Bubble Schmeisis (Remixed)
- International Aufguss Masters
- Literary salons, music, storytelling
The idea is simple: heat heightens the senses, strips away distraction and creates a communal intensity. Summerhall leans into that with characteristic mischief.
Other Notables from the Final 30
The Subplot: A hyperfixation on the Titan submersible — Sophie Smyth
A UK premiere from Australia, blending neurodivergent perspective, obsession and the strange cultural afterlife of the Titan disaster.
The Distance — Ben Norris
Part play, part extreme workout. Norris — former GB athlete and Archers actor — uses sweat, endurance and ambition as theatrical material. Produced by a team with credits including SIX and The Choir of Man.
Women of Will — Siofra Dromgoole
A new play inspired by Tina Packer’s seminal work on Shakespeare’s heroines, starring Ella Louden and Nigel Gore. A pub‑based celebration of female characters and the actors who’ve embodied them.
Thermodrama — Lovecock Productions
A comic‑tragic look at wellness culture, set in Peckham Pulse Leisure Centre. A satire of self‑improvement that recognises how easily it curdles into cruelty.
BULL / FIGHT — Mythography & Macrobert Arts Centre
A Scottish co‑production exploring the death and legacy of Federico García Lorca during the Spanish Civil War.
Bunny! — Craig Manson
A darkly comic hybrid of cabaret, live art and musical theatre about a starlet‑serial‑killer. Manson’s Instagram‑based arts‑sector satire bleeds into the stage work.
Nesting — Trolley Problem
A multidisciplinary piece about assisted dying, neurodegenerative illness and the ethics of care.
Boogie on the Bones — withintheatre
A musical political play set in Soviet‑era Moscow, adapted from Yurii Korotkov’s novel. Youth culture vs repression, told through jazz and underground dance.
We Had Fun — Emmeline Hartley & Jack Mullings
A dark comedy about consent, directed by Carrie‑Anne Ingrouille (SIX). Described as an “un‑romantic” look at the grey zones of sexual politics.
Homecumming — Magalie Rouillard‑Bazinet
A solo piece about losing one’s orgasm — and oneself — blending humour, mental health, shame and sexuality.
Man or Bear — Katie Hurley & Sarah Hehir
A fast, physical, intergenerational play inspired by the viral “man or bear” question. Directed by Ursula Martinez.
Baby Everything — Lee Minora
A helter‑skelter interrogation of digital‑age anxiety, ricocheting between clowning, storytelling and fantasy.
Good With Faces — Oisín Kearney & Gina Donnelly
A taut mother–social worker thriller about power, care and the state.
Horrorshow — Chronic Insanity
Gig‑theatre with a live 00s‑indie band, exploring class, nostalgia and who culture is really for.
TOAST — Jude Green
A pitch‑black comedy about class divides, “Proper Jobs,” and the economics of starving for your art.
Sitting (In Silence) — Terracotta Productions
A tragi‑comedy about mental health, grief and suicide loss, rooted in lived experience.
The Trials of Magnus Coffinkey — Give or Take Productions
A dark fairytale using storytelling to navigate trauma.
Magic Lantern Anthology — The Drolly Theater
A family‑friendly blend of puppetry, science and light, creating “future folklore” and revived myths.
All details above are drawn directly from the uploaded Summerhall press release.
Closing Note
Summerhall’s 2026 programme — 72 shows plus 9 in the Sauna Theatre — runs 6–31 August, with tickets on sale now It’s a festival built on heat, risk, and the pleasure of artists who refuse to play safe.
