Call for applications – 2026 Edition

In but a few years, the Verona Shakespeare Fringe (VSF) has become a significant stop on the European Shakespeare Festivals circuit. We’re unique, there’s no better way to say it. The festival blurs perceived boundaries between practical and academic Shakespearean work and creates a lively intersection of new possibilities in Shakespearean practice and scholarship.

The Verona Shakespeare Fringe seeks productions and project proposals for its 2026 Festival held in Verona, July 20-26: please consider joining us! The Fringe is organised by the Skenè Research Centre at the University of Verona, in collaboration with the Conservatorio di Verona Evaristo Felice Dall’Abaco (Verona, IT), European Shakespeare Festivals Network, Faculty of Dramatic Arts (Belgrade, SRB), Fondazione Teatro Atlantide (Verona, IT), Guilford School of Acting (Surrey, UK), HamletScenen (DEN), Ippogrifo Produzioni (Verona, IT), Teatro Ristori (Verona, IT), Teatro Scientifico – Teatro Laboratorio (Verona, IT), and Westmond College (US). VSF takes place on the same days as the Shakespeare and the Mediterranean Summer School organised by Skenè. The VSF is at once lab, studio, crucible, incubator, hothouse, and platform. It values experimentation and conversation, expression and debate, and the lively exchange of ideas.

Companies will be contacted by the Skenè team who will take care of the organisation of the festival. For enquiries please contact vsf.skene@ateneo.univr.it ⟶ This year is especially exciting, as the VSF runs concurrently with the World Shakespeare Congress, where hundreds of Shakespearean scholars will meet to discuss and present the contemporary relevance of Shakespeare’s plays. The 2026 Fringe will certainly be a once-in-a- lifetime experience. Please see detailed information about WSC here.

The Verona Shakespeare Fringe seeks proposals that fit the festival’s vision for new, untried, untested, and/or innovative Shakespearean productions, along with already established productions that are animated by some combination of the following:

• New, original, and/or experimental approaches to Shakespeare’s plays and poetry;
• Artists, researchers, and companies engaged in intercultural, multi-lingual, intergenerational, or international work;
• Devised Theatre;
• International co-productions;
• Intersectional work in terms of live and digital performance, and World Premiere performances.

The VSF will be hosted at the Teatro SS. Trinità, located in the heart of Verona, near the Arena. VSF participants will engage with students, scholars, audience members, and other artists in a rich exchange of performances, Q&A sessions, and social events. (For further information on the venue, please see the technical rider below)

January 15, 2026

Selection process and results:

By the end of January short-listed candidates will be notified with a view to an online meeting with the ADs and the selection committee;
In early February results will be notified via email (vsf.skene@ateneo.univr.it).

Please see detailed information about Skenè Research Centre here

Please see detailed information about VSF here

Please see detailed information about SaM here

Apply to Perform at the 2025 Verona Shakespeare Fringe!

The call is open to international professional individuals, groups, or companies.

Note: The festival is not open to student companies. The festival accepts applications for original, yet-to-be-performed-work, as well as performances that have already been on stage. Each group or individual can submit one proposal only.

Submissions must include:

• artistic bio of the company or the artist;
• technical rider of the performance (please check the technical rider of the venue for details);
• requisite video trailers and photographs
  • For Performances created to premiere at the Verona Shakespeare Fringe Festival: 90-120; second trailer of a previous show created by the artists or company. Please include a short extract of a previous performance with actors speaking.
    Please do not submit trailer scored solely with music;
  • For Performance-Ready Performances: 2-5 minute video trailer of the show. Please include a short extract of the performance showing the actors speaking (minimum 3 minutes).
    Please do not submit trailer scored solely with music.
• acceptance to provide subtitles in English and Italian;
• declaration of compliance with visa requirements;
• duration of the set-up and disassembly of the show;
• application form filled in with all the required details.
• To propose a project, production, or idea, complete the application form and send it to vsf.skene@ateneo.univr.it

COMPANIES ARE REQUIRED TO:

• Participate in interviews and Q&A sessions (possibly on the day after the performance) – this is a necessary condition of festival acceptance. Selected companies need to organise travel so that 1-2 members of the company are available for the scheduled Q&A.
• Promote the Festival and their show;
• Participate in and share VSF-curated promotional videos, trailers, and short documentaries;
• Provide both the English and the Italian subtitles as well as the script by the end of June

THE FESTIVAL’S CONDITIONS AND PROVISIONS INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING:

• Teatro SS. Trinità (See Rider below; please make sure that your show can comply with the
• venue’s space and equipment availability);
• 1,000 to 3,000 euros per performance, depending on type of performance. Additionally, each company will receive 50% of the proceeds from ticket sales, net of copyright costs in accordance with Italian law. Both amounts may be subject to tax withholding based on the international conventions between Italy and the countries of the applicants;
• Participation of the companies in interviews and Q&A sessions;
• Organisation and promotion of the event;
• Technical equipment and personnel as outlined in the technical rider; companies will be charged for any additional requests;
• Video-projector, laptop and a person (if necessary) in charge of running the English and Italian subtitles following a detailed script; companies are required to provide both the
• English and Italian subtitles as well as the script.

! VSF does not provide further honoraria, stipends, or other kinds of payment for artists or staff of the companies.

In order to be eligible, the applicants must be legal entities (private or public bodies), this entails having a legal representative with power of attorney, the ability to issue regular invoices, and possession of a bank account. Professionals who are not legal entities should sign a contract with a legal entity before the final agreement with the Festival Organisation. The legal entity will then sign the contract with the Festival Organisation as the legal representative of the professional/s.

Non-Italian applicants established in EU State members must provide, once selected, the A1 FORM, certifying Social Security Coverage in their own country and social security contribution exemption in Italy for each travelling member of the company. For further information click: here.

Non-Italian applicants NOT established in EU State members, or for whom the European Social Security Legislation does not apply, must verify the possibility of obtaining a document from the Social Security System of their own countries attesting the Social Security Coverage in theircountry and social security contribution exemption in Italy for each travelling member of the company. For any further information regarding social security in an international context, please refer to the guide published by Pearle Live Performance Europe available here.

TEATRO SS. TRINITÀ – TECHNICAL RIDER

LIGHTING SYSTEM

• 10/12 maximum LED lights (DMX controlled) for a total of 15 kilowatts, arranged as
• follows: 4 lights on the right, 4 on the left, and 2 (and possibly 2 more) on the central trusses.
• Colour doesn’t change. Warm white light, halogen-like.
• 5 additional LED lights, with colour change capability.
• Cables: DMX only;
• Analog console with 24 channels + 24 channels (1 light requires 5 to 15 channels).

SOUND SYSTEM

• 8-channel mixer;
• 2 panoramic microphones available if needed;
• Possibility to connect via PC (as long as the necessary softwares are installed);
• 2 speakers on the right and 2 on the left (in both cases, one is placed at ground level and the
• other close to the ceiling).

STAGE DIMENSIONS and MATERIALS

• 630 cm wide x 540 cm deep;
• The seating capacity is 196, with 154 seats in the stalls. The theater complies with regulations
• and is equipped with 2 restrooms, one of which is accessible for individuals with disabilities;
• Manual curtain;
• No backdrop or wings;
• One stair on the right and one on the left of the stage that grant access to the dressing rooms
• (placed under the stage).
• Shared changing room below the stage

PERSONNEL: 1 technical director

To see some pictures of the the venue, click here.