Get ready for five weeks of non-stop laughter as the 22nd annual Sydney Comedy Festival takes over the city with a host of international and emerging comedy legends.
In 2025, more than 160,000 people attended shows across the Festival, with events like Great Laugh In The Park and Gala on the Green attracting roughly 12,500 people with their community comedy takeovers. 2026 sees the program evolve further, offering over 380 shows across April and May from upwards of 1000 talented comedians, actors and artists.
The Sydney Comedy Festival is spreading laughter far and wide, taking over venues across the city from North to South and East to West. 13 festival hubs will host 50 stages, and whether you’re catching shows in the North at The Concourse Chatswood, The Joan in Penrith, Bondi Pavilion in the East or Marrickville’s Factory Theatre, the vibes will be high and the laughs will be loud.
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When and where is the Sydney Comedy Festival?
This year, Sydney Comedy Festival will be extended to five weeks, running from April 13 to May 17, meaning there’s even more time to hit the town and check out some of the local, national and international talents that are guaranteed to make your belly ache with laughter.
The full list of festival hubs is as follows:
- The Comedy Store, Moore Park
- Factory Theatre, Marrickville
- State Theatre, Sydney CBD
- The Grand Electric, Surry Hills
- Darling Quarter Theatre, Sydney CBD
- Improv Theatre Sydney, Redfern
- Sydney Opera House, Circular Quay
- The Joan Sutherland Performing Arts Centre, Penrith
- Bondi Pavilion, Bondi Beach
- Enmore Theatre, Newtown
- The Pavilion Performing Arts Centre, Sutherland
- The Concourse, Chatswood
- Theatre Royal, Sydney CBD
The big events
1. Great Laugh in the Park
Great Laugh in the Park isn’t just a comedy show, it’s a full takeover of Tumbalong Park, featuring circus tents, a giggle garden, playgrounds, face painting, food trucks, ice cream, roving performers and more. Last year, the free event completely sold out, thanks to the presence of some comedy bigshots, including 8 out of 10 Cats Does Countdown’s Sara Pascoe and American stand-up comic, Drew Lynch, known for his Golden Buzzer-winning performance on Season 10 of America’s Got Talent. The Wiggles’ royalty, Dorothy the Dinosaur, even made an appearance, meaning everyone from youngsters to parents stayed entertained all day.
Where: Tumbalong Park, Darling Harbour.
When: Sunday, April 19.
Price: Free.
2. Comedy Cruise
Experience Sydney Harbour like never before on this one-hour chartered cruise, all aboard the HMS Comedy. Before you hop on board, grab a drink at the shipboard bar, then take in the sights of the Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge from the front deck, before settling down to enjoy an afternoon of laughs. Boats, views and comedy- what more could you ask for?
Where: May 9.
When: Darling Harbour, Aquarium Wharf.
Price: $65 per person.
3. Tiffany Haddish Live
American funny lady Tiffany Haddish (whom you might recognise from Saturday Night Live or Girls Trip) will bring her hit comedy show Tiffany Haddish Live Down Under to the Sydney Comedy Festival this April. These two exclusive Australian shows, at the State Theatre and the Enmore Theatre, promise to be ferociously funny, with tickets bound to sell fast, as these gigs are your only chance to see Haddish in Australia. The Emmy, Grammy and NAACP Image Award winner will bring some LA magic, combining hilarious anecdotes with that effortlessly commanding stage presence.
Where: State Theatre and Enmore Theatre.
When: State Theatre, April 25, Enmore Theatre, April 26.
Price: Tickets from $79.90.
4. In Conversation with Richard Gadd
The whole world was absolutely captivated by Richard Gadd’s Netflix series, Baby Reindeer, a true story based on Gadd’s own experiences with a female stalker, which forced him to face past traumas and navigate an extremely challenging period of his life. This Sydney Comedy Festival, Gadd will take to the Sydney Opera House stage for one night only, sharing intimate reflections and creative insight into one of the most-talked-about series of the decade.
Where: Sydney Opera House, Bennelong Point.
When: May 11.
Price: Tickets from $79.
5. Comedy Crawl
Last year, the Sydney Comedy Festival dropped its inaugural Comedy Crawl in the Sydney CBD. Our editor who attended it labelled the evening “an autumnal highlight” and the “perfect way to get involved if you can’t choose from the seemingly endless program.” This year, Sydney Comedy Festival is capitalising on its crawl idea even further, offering five different sessions at five different locations, including Manly, The Rocks, Rozelle, the CBD and Oxford Street.
Where: Various crawls in Manly, The Rocks, Rozelle, the CBD and Oxford Street.
When: Manly: April 28, YCK Laneways: May 2, The Rocks: May 5, Oxford Street: May 6, Rozelle: May 16.
Price: $55 per person.
6. Comedy Gala on the Green
This huge free outdoor gala is full of family-friendly comedy, where guests are encouraged to bring picnics, sprawl across sunny Tumbalong Park and enjoy a laidback afternoon of laughs. We already know that this year’s lineup will be headlined by international star Tiffany Haddish, but there’s also bound to be a strong schedule of local and national comedic stars, live music, and curated food and drink stalls.
Where: Tumbalong Park, Darling Harbour.
When: Saturday, April 18.
Price: Free.
Our top picks
7. Sh!tfaced Shakespeare
Easily one of my favourite events from the Sydney Comedy Festival last year, Sh!tfaced Shakespeare is like any normal Shakespeare play, except one of the actors has spent the build-up to the performance getting absolutely hammered. It won’t take the audience long to find out who the culprit is, and the audience is taken on a journey of laughs, groans, sabotaged storytelling and even sometimes, nudity. The best thing about Sh!tfaced Shakespeare is that you don’t know where the play is going to go, or if they’ll even manage to get through the performance.
This year, the Sh!tfaced Shakespeare cast will be performing at four different Sydney Comedy Festival hubs, meaning there’s no excuse for you to miss out on seeing the gloomy tragedy of Hamlet in a completely new light. Let’s just hope Hamlet isn’t the one drinking straight vodka before the show, as you may be there a while.
Where: The Joan, Penrith, The Concourse, Chatswood, Darling Quarter Theatre and The Factory Theatre.
When: April 22 and May 6-10.
Price: Tickets from $32.
8. The Late Nite Powerpoint Comedy Showcase
This cult classic is always a Comedy Fest favourite, and even won the “Best of Variety Weekly Award” at the 2025 Adelaide Fringe Festival. Six different comedians will perform with six different powerpoints, offering a lineup show like no other, that will inevitably result in lags, technical difficulties and all-around Microsoft Office chaos. We firmly encourage any budding corporate kings and queens to sit through this show.
Where: Factory Theatre, 105 Victoria Rd, Marrickville NSW 2204.
When: April 25 and April 26.
Price: Tickets from $27.
9. Swamplesque 2
Sometimes, you’ve just got to embrace the wonderfully weird and wacky, and what better way to do that than an evening at Swamplesque 2? Trigger Happy Productions brings this Shrek-meets-burlesque-meets-drag-performance show to the Sydney Comedy Festival, after a tour Far Far Away (in the UK) and a stint at Adelaide Fringe Festival.
Where: The Enmore Theatre and The Joan Penrith.
When: Enmore Theatre: April 30and May 1, The Joan Penrith: May 2.
Price: Tickets from $59.
10. 100% Dark Comedy
Everyone has one inappropriate friend who gets a bit too excited when playing Cards Against Humanity and loves to push boundaries. This Sydney Comedy Festival, treat them to a night at 100% Dark Comedy, which will feature the “best dark and filthy jokes from the best comedians in Australia”. Exploring the morbid, the taboo and the absurd, no topic is off limits at this show (though you might end up wishing this wasn’t the case).
Where: Metro Theatre, G2/624 George St, Sydney NSW 2000.
When: May 7-9.
Price: Tickets from $23.
How to get tickets
Tickets to shows can be purchased online at www.sydneycomedyfest.com.au, and you can also try your luck at the show venue’s box office. That being said, the majority of shows do sell out in advance, so it’s best to pre-book tickets.
Tickets will go on sale on Tuesday, March 4.
(Cover Image Credit: Brett Hemmings).
