Claryss Kuan reviews The Pole Shebang, Andrea James Lui's one-woman show of dance, comedy, autobiography and confession, staged in The Living Room at Erskineville Town Hall for Sydney Fringe 2026 (22–26 September). This performance isn't trying to be a definitive history of pole dancing, nor a manifesto on gender politics in the industry. It is one woman's story — funny, physical, occasionally vulnerable, and unapologetically personal — and it was a privilege to witness and enjoy.

A pet fish's brush with death becomes an absurdist odyssey in All Fish Everywhere's world premiere of Get (your fish) Living or Die Trying (to save your fish), at Inner West Pride Centre – Pride Hall, Newtown, 17–19 Sep for Sydney Fringe 2026. Fernando de Miguel Fuertes finds an ensemble that commits with a localised brand of sardonic earnestness to every bit as if their life depended on it — a handmade, hyper‑committed picaresque that drifts with ease.