The Isle of Wight’s award-winning summer arts festival, Ventnor Fringe, has launched the Ventnor Exchange Arena, a new Big Top and nomadic venue for the island. The company behind the festival, Ventnor Exchange, has revealed details of its new venue, which will host a ‘Preview Season’ at this year’s Ventnor Fringe from 18th – 27th July 2025, ahead of its official opening next year.
The Ventnor Exchange Arena is a touring, multi-purpose ‘Big Top’ tent that will complement the arts organisation’s existing building, bringing an innovative, exciting programme of theatre, circus, cabaret and music direct to audiences across the Isle of Wight. The first of its kind for the small island, the venue is set to become a key provision of arts throughout the year, allowing residents and visitors alike to engage with a variety of work.
Transforming the southernmost town of England’s largest island into a buzzing hub of creativity, Ventnor Fringe is a unique cultural gathering that brings together a rich, varied and eclectic blend of over 150 performances across a range of beautiful venues. The ten-day Preview Season will feature Edinburgh and West End smash hit, Murder, She Didn’t Write, which turns the classic murder mystery into a hysterical improvised comedy riot, while Finnish clowns Kallo Collective prove language is no barrier in Receptionists, their physical comedy about customer service and hospitality.
Acrobatics, adrenaline-pumping street dance and breath-taking roller skating, set on a giant moving treadmill, bring the awe in Gorilla Circus’ RPM while Northern Rascals tackle moving themes in Sunny Side, a raw portrayal of the modern young male experience, informed by over 750 young people from across the UK. Cabaret legend Le Gateau Chocolat and Ventnor Fringe favourites Night Owl Shows, are among others to feature.
The full programme for Ventnor Fringe 2025 includes comedians, brand new plays and late-night clown performances. Shows already announced for the festival span fringe favourites, such as Ahir Shah’s Pick of the Fringe, and Quentin Blake’s classic tale Mrs Armitage on Wheels, to immersive show, ARCADE, a unique experience in a dark shipping container which uses 360-degree binaural sound and sensory effects.
Originally founded by a group of teenage friends, Ventnor Fringe has grown into an impressive multi-disciplinary arts and cultural festival, as well as a year-round arts offering for the island. Now in its sixteenth year, the festival programmes an array of music, visual arts, circus, theatre and comedy shows, which will be hosted by 15 main venues and a range of pop-up locations for 2025. Each July, this idyllic island retreat comes alive with pop-up venues and bustling bars in every conceivable space, all within a unique setting in the heart of a National Landscape and UNESCO Biosphere Reserve.
Speaking about the new Ventnor Exchange Arena, Creative & Development Director Jack Whitewood explained, “We hope this will be transformative for the Island, a professional venue that can move between all of our towns and villages, giving every community, especially those without a theatre, an opportunity to see and host incredible live events.”
The bespoke tent, currently under construction, has been especially designed to be multipurpose and will be able to host both seated and standing events for audiences of between 200-1,000. The venue has been made possible following a £225,000 award from Arts Council England’s Capital Investment Programme.
Tickets for these and over 55 other shows are now on sale at Ventnor Fringe, with the full programme for this year’s festival due to be unveiled at the end of April. More announcements will follow in the coming weeks.
Listings and ticket information can be found here.
