The must-see shows at the 2026 Melbourne International Comedy Festival

Malthouse Theatre
March 26 - April 19

Between Netflix specials and popping up on Sex Education, curating for the Brooklyn Museum and releasing The New York Times bestselling memoir, Ten Steps To Nanette, it feels like a while since we’ve seen Gadsby do their MICF thing. The Evening Muse invites a rotating panel of comic guests to join them in an existential twist on The Tonight Show. Anything could happen, with American comedian Abby Wambaugh on hand for support each night, as well as fielding their own MICF gig, The First 3 Minutes of 17 Shows.

Book here.

The Victoria Hotel
March 26 - April 5

If you’ve had a gutful of folks casually dropping the F-bomb while worshipping incredibly unhelpful body image ‘ideals’ force-fed to us by wellness warriors on social media, then First Nations hero Steph Tisdell is here to help us get real. A proud Yidinji woman who has leveraged her stand-up career into screen credits, including Bump and Total Control, Tisdell embraces her curves while taking control of her own body goals in new show, Fat. Also check out stage star Elaine Crombie’s Grief, Love and Lead Balloons.

Book here.

Melbourne Town Hall
March 26 - April 19

One of the funniest and loveliest Australians in the arts, Alexei Toliopoulos is an irrepressible film fanatic who teamed up with one third of Aunt Donna, Zachary Ruane, to deliver one of last year’s finest MICF shows, Refused Classification. The jovial goofball leans hard into his screen obsession, this time channelling the physical media mores of the '80s via the sometime-tape-eating mayhem of VHS cassettes. You can also catch bosom buddy Ruane in his sure-to-be-awesome debut solo show, Comedy. 

Book here.

The Westin
March 26 - April 12

Hotshot Indian comedian Prashasti Singh has had just about enough of her single status being questioned by the patriarchy and assorted busybody crumb maidens. Fast approaching her forties, just a touch behind MICF, Singh’s debut Melbourne gig, Divine Feminine, invites you into a therapy session where whack expectations of womanhood will be tackled alongside anxiety-inducing familial pressure. There’s a Hindi-language performance of the show on April 2. Also check out Aaqib Merchant’s Is Not Uberman.

Book here.

Comedy Theatre
March 25 to April 5

The shock loss of Schitt’s Creek star Catherine O’Hara earlier this year was a startling reminder that our comedy heroes are mortals, just like us. Which makes it even more precious that beloved Australian star Denise Scott has beaten breast cancer after scaring the baby cheeses out of us in early 2023. Her first show back, Tickety Boo, promises to balance a razor-sharp slice of gallows humour with a brimful of resilience-fired positivity that proves laughter really is the best medicine. Pair with Kitty Flanagan’s Glad Game.

Book here.

Grouse Room 7
April 2-19 

From bananas to beer cans via a fish on a pub roof, rural Australian towns are littered with BIG fibreglass things bringing in a steady stream of Instagram influencers. Worming their way into our collective hearts by sheer dint of their cheery bizarreness, they take centre stage in trans superstar and Triple X playwright Glace Chase’s latest work, Glace’s Big Things. Detailing a debauched road trip, mid-breakdown during lockdown, it’s sure to go big on innuendo. Check out British comedian Sam Nicoresti’s Baby Doomer, too.

Book here.

The Westin
March 26 - April 19

If you need to connect with your inner calm, you could embrace the ancient Japanese philosophy of finding happiness in the simple, imperfect things. Or, if you need your inner calm to pipe down and let the silliness out in an ugly snort-laugh riot, you could check out Taskmaster Australia alum Takashi Wakasugi, aka Waka. Wabi-Sabi Comedy, his new hour of power, promises to fuse both goals in a way that might just take you to the next level. Then get Toxically Optimistic with New Yorker Zainab Johnson.

Book here.

The Motley Wherehaus
March 28 - April 19

If you caught Coombs Marr’s spreadsheet-slaying choose your own adventure Every Single Thing In My Whole Entire Life, you’ll know her talent for controlled chaos will do your innards a mischief. So snap up tickets to see her follow-up, Busy Club, as soon as humanly possible, even if it is a work in progress. If the collage of personal pics from cradle to big dag doesn’t pull you in, come for the DIY realisation of her aborted sculptural potential. Then get musically creative with Gillian Cosgriff’s Life, Oh Life.

Book here.

Trainscendence
April 9-19 

Hailing from Albury, awesome wheelchair-using comedian Oliver Hunter has carved a career out of cussing stupid design flaws that prevent people living with a disability from moving easily in the world, on his own travel podcast and Dylan Alcott's ListenAble. Now, he shares the savagely funny truth about battling toddlers, indifferent airlines and wildly rude questions in It’s All Good. It's directed by Tom Ballard, who also presents a new show, Be Funny Challenge (Impossible) and a return season of JKS: a Comedy(?).

Book now.

The MC Showroom
March 25-29

“Gentlemen, this is democracy manifest,” sounds like the start of a lofty political speech. Until you hear the line, “Get your hand off my penis!” Arguably Australia’s most meme-d moment, the 1991 arrest of eloquently cranky Jack Karlson in a Chinese restaurant in Brisbane has become the stuff of legend. If you know your judo well, don’t miss A Succulent Chinese Musical?! Written and performed by Rick Butler and Kate Stewart, it’s the tribute he deserves. Then trip backwards with Raul Kohli’s A History Comedy Show. 

Book here.