Sydney Fringe Festival Awards 2023

Every year we work to secure ways for our artists to tour their work, ensuring productions have a life beyond our festival. Our awards program highlights exceptional performances and extends professional growth opportunities, propelling artists onto the global stage.


Touring Partnership Awards:

Exchange award programs with Fringe Festivals around Australia and the world offer our independent artists touring possibilities with financial and logistical support, as well as bringing stand-out independent work to Sydney that may otherwise not have the means to tour here.
Our award partnerships include:

  • New Zealand Fringe Tour Ready Award (March Festival)
  • The Melbourne Fringe Touring Award, presented by Melbourne Fringe (October Festival)
  • San Diego International Fringe Tour Ready Award (June Festival)
  • Hollywood Fringe Tour Ready Award (June Festival).

 

EMERGING ARTIST AWARD

This is to acknowledge the incredible work and potential of an Emerging Artist across our festival.

 

 

BEST IN CATEGORY

Every year we award a best in the following categories for excellence in their genre.

  • Best In Comedy
  • Best In spoken word & storytelling
  • Best In Dance
  • Best In Circus & Physical Theatre
  • Best In Music
  • Best In Fringe Kids
  • Best In Immersive
  • Best In Musical Theatre & Cabaret
  • Best In Theatre

 2023 FESTIVAL AWARD WINNERS

Best in Awards

Best in Theatre
  • Banana Crabtree Simon
  • Coil
  • ENDHOE
  • Death in the Pantheon
  • The Mother
  • Plenty of Fish in the Sea (Winner)
Best in Comedy
  • Are you a Boy or a Girl? (Highly Commended)
  • Karate Man
  • Jazz or a Bucket of Blood
  • Fillow Talk’s Immersive Family Reunion
  • Sam Kissajukian: 300 Paintings (Winner)
Best in Immersive & Interactive
  • There’s Something About Bottom
  • Lilies & Dust
  • In/Finite Sol
  • Get Blind with Brian
  • Murder at the Bowlo
  • Journey to the Kingdom of Hypnos (Winner)
Best in Physical Theatre & Circus
  • Garry Starr Greece Lightning
  • GODZ
  • Jeromaia Detto: MUSH
  • Plenty of Fish in the Sea (Winner)
Best in Musical Theatre & Cabaret
  • Singular: An Improvised Cabaret
  • The Ukulele Man
  • Blank: An Improvised Musical
  • Tim Handsome: Almost Naked
  • Timberlina & Friends: A Drag Cabaret (Highly Commended)
  • Sydney Drag Stars (Winner)
Best in Spoken Word
  • Jon Bennett: Fire in the Meth Lab
  • Jon Bennett: How I Learnt to Hug
  • Jon Bennett: Playing with Men (Winner)
Best in Dance
  • Lien: One to One
  • Water/Mirror
  • LOVE/LOVE/LOVE/LOVE/LOVE (Highly Commended)
  • Unfolding (Winner)
Best in Music
  • Billie McCarthy
  • Phil Stack & Natalie Gillespie
  • Godriguez
  • Get Blind with Brian (Winner)
Best in Fringe Kids
  • KABOOM!
  • Flabbergasters
  • Pocket Sized Circus
  • Wilbur the Optical Whale (Winner)
Best Emerging Artist Award
  • Frankie Fearce
  • Almitra Mavalvala
  • Melody Rachel
  • Brianna McCarthy (Winner)
  • Anita Lovell (Winner)

Touring/Remount Award Winner

Hollywood Fringe Tour Ready Award

ENDHOE

Melbourne Fringe Tour Ready Award

Berliners – Nick and Tom

New Zealand Fringe Tour Ready Award

ENDHOE

San Diego International Fringe Tour Ready Award

Jazz or a Bucket of Blood

Adelaide Fringe Tour Ready Award

The Ukulele Man

Fringe World Tour Ready Award

Jazz or a Bucket of Blood

Critical Stages Touring Development Award

The Ukulele Man

Accessible Arts Access Award

JD Zamora: FOMOsexual

Eldon & Anne Foote Trust Grant

Jolanta Juszkiewicz from The Mother

Additional Awards

Spirit of the Fringe

Carmel Clavin

Volunteer of the Year

Ian Elgey & Rachel Byrne

Festival Director's Award

Plenty of Fish in the Sea

Ultimate Spirit of the Fringe

Kerri Glasscock

Plenty of Fish in the Sea
Sam Kissajukian: 300 Paintings in Lockdown
Jon Bennett: Playing With Men
Unfolding
Wilbur the Optical Whale
110% Average (Anita Lovell)
Jazz or a Bucket of Blood
JD Zamora: FOMOsexual
The Mother