Calabar Fringe 2026: Crossing Points
A new open-call fringe festival of theatre, music, comedy, poetry, dance, visual art and short film, in the city that gave Nigeria its first capital and Africa its biggest street party.
A fringe for a city that has always hosted the crowd
Calabar was the first capital of Nigeria, and for more than 20 years it has been home to Calabar Carnival, widely known as Africa's biggest street party. Yet our artists remain under-exposed to global arts and performance platforms.
Lagos Fringe and Abuja Fringe have begun the fringe tradition in Nigeria. Calabar Fringe brings it to Calabar: an open call to artists worldwide, a platform for local creatives to reach larger stages, and a new reason for audiences, media and industry guests to visit.
The festival is an initiative of Movie Village Production and is run in partnership with the Cross River State Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture.
Cross River is a place of crossings: rivers, borders, cultures and generations.
We look for bold, original and unconventional work that crosses lines between forms, communities, languages and ideas, from emerging and established artists alike. A selection panel reviews every submission against clear criteria: originality, craft, audience appeal and fit with the lens.
Three days, many rooms
New plays
Original theatre, each up to one hour, staged across the festival.
Short films
Selected shorts screened to a live audience, from Cross River and around the world.
Shorter performances
Music, comedy, poetry and dance in a rolling daily programme.
Workshops and panels
Sessions for young creatives and industry guests on making and showing work.
Visual art exhibition
A gallery strand running alongside the performances.
Open to all
Slots for Cross River artists alongside visiting work.
Talent is not the shortage
- Cross River has deep cultural heritage and a great deal of talent, with too little exposure to global arts platforms.
- Artists get a stage, an audience, and contact with programmers and partners who can carry their work further.
- Calabar gains a new attraction for the Christmas season, with artists, audiences and media staying and spending in the city.
- Partners rec eive a full post-festival report with attendance figures, photographs, video and media coverage.
Calabar Fringe is led by Movie Village Production, a Calabar-based theatre and film company. Its work includes Ikwo Ndem: The Musical, the highest-attended production at Lagos Fringe 2024.