The Central Library of Rochester & Monroe County is proud to, once again, be a hosting venue for the 2025 ESL Rochester Fringe Festival with more new and exciting shows, Tuesday, September 9 – Saturday, September 20, 2025.
All Shows at the library are FREE and open to the public.
Located in the heart of Downtown Rochester, NY, at 115 South Avenue, the Central library offers participants a unique experience with shows emersed in our large collection of books, music, movies and more. There is plenty to explore before and after the show right within our two beautiful buildings, the Bausch & Lomb Public Library building, and the historical and iconic Rundel Memorial Library building.
This year the Central Library will be hosting 4 different shows:
the 14th Annual Juried International Art of the Book & Paper exhibit
This exhibit is ongoing for the duration of the Rochester Fringe Festival during the Library’s open hours. Join us for the featured Artists’ Reception on Wednesday, September 17 from 5:00-7:00pm to explore the exhibit and meet some of the participating artists.
Script-in-Hand Players – Saturday September 13 & 20 from 12 PM – 1 PM
An hour of original short plays, essays, and monologues—comic, touching, and satirical—performed by Rochester writers and artists in the style of Readers’ Theater.
Lunchador Podcast-a-Rama – Saturday, September 13 from 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM in the Kate Gleason Auditorium
Join the hosts of the Lunchador Podcast Network for a fun, fast-paced dive into the world of podcasting! Our hosts will be selected into a few different random panels and given a topic to improvise a short show on the spot. If you like funny, thought-provoking conversation about arts, culture, food, and all the great things Rochester has to offer, this is the show for you!
Spooky Stories in the Stacks – Thursday, September 18 starting at 7:30 PM in the Rundel Memorial Library Building (LIMITED TO 80 PARTICIPANTS First Come Basis)
Join the staff of the Central Library for an after-hours tour of the Rundel Memorial Building. For 90 minutes, you’ll explore the maze of closed basement stacks and see the beautiful main floor from a staff perspective. Along the way, we hope you get to meet some of the building’s more secretive residents.
All show and venue information can be found at rochesterfringe.com.
To request an interpreter for a show please call 428-8304 ten days prior to the event, or submit our online form
ABOUT ESL ROCHESTER FRINGE FESTIVAL:
The 12-day ESL Rochester Fringe Festival is the largest multidisciplinary performing arts event in New York State. Since the festival’s inception in 2012, nearly a million people have attended more than 5,000 performances by regional, national, and international artists, from emerging to superstar. From drama to dance, comedy to children’s entertainment, music to magic, and so much more, this internationally known powerhouse encourages creative expression while nurturing the artistic process, all while supplying new audiences to established and emerging arts venues. The ESL Rochester Fringe Festival strives to be diverse and inclusive, and to stimulate downtown Rochester both culturally and economically.
ABOUT FRINGE FESTIVALS:
In 1947, eight theatre groups showed up – uninvited – to perform at the newly established Edinburgh International Festival in Scotland. Although not listed in the official program, the groups performed anyway, at venues they found for themselves. The following year, a Scottish journalist coined the term “festival fringe” to describe these non-curated shows that began turning up annually. The Edinburgh Fringe is now the world’s largest arts festival and the third largest event after the Olympics and the World Cup. Today, there are more than 250 Fringe Festivals worldwide, with nearly 50 in the United States. The ESL Rochester Fringe Festival was the first in Upstate New York.
ESL ROCHESTER FRINGE SOCIAL MEDIA INFORMATION HERE:
Facebook.com/rochesterfringefestival
Instagram and X: @rochesterfringe
TikTok: @rochesterfringefestival
