From Friday, February 27 to Sunday, March 8, 2026: Hamilton Festival Theatre Company presents Frost Bites, Hamilton’s biggest winter theatre festival, featuring six packed days of indoor and outdoor programming over two weekends. Presented in partnership with Theatre Aquarius and The Staircase Theatre + Lounge.

The artists in this year’s Frost Bites festival took inspiration from the title of one of the festival’s key productions: Land, Place, Home. They invite you to consider your own relationship to this theme, to this land – and the ways that gathering in a shared creative experience can deepen, challenge or reframe these relationships.

Week one program (February 27 – March 1)

Week one programming features new works at Theatre Aquarius and family-friendly activities at the Bernie Morelli Recreation Centre. See the event schedule for the full list of programs – and to search by venue, date and age rating.

Highlights include:

• Land, Place, Home (Feb. 27 – Mar. 1 at Theatre Aquarius Studio). Co-produced by Open Heart Arts Theatre, ABRAR Trauma & Mental Health Services and HFTco, Land, Place, Home is a community-created piece shaped by the lived experiences of newcomers, immigrants and refugees.
• The Three Little Pigs: A Musical for the Whole Family! by Enchantment Theatre (Feb. 28 & Mar. 1 at Theatre Aquarius Studio). A farmstead adventure where young sow sisters navigate their unique strengths and problem-solving styles to build a house together. Suitable for kids ages 2-8, but fun for all ages, the show features original and classic folk songs, puppets, dances and audience participation. This family-friendly musical stars Darcy Welch, Kathleen Welch, Emily Johnston, Nicholas Blanchard and Benjamin Welch.
• Interactive art workshops. Two days of Lantern-making Workshops by Shadowland Theatre, with participants creating oiled paper lanterns, with an invitation to join the illuminated Procession of Light through the community on March 1 at 6:00 PM; Interactive Drum Circle by Tammy Lacas and Mika Woolley, with singing and drumming traditional songs and Medicine Wheel teachings; and Take A Poem Leave A Poem by gritLIT Next Chapter Committee, where participants can take a poem, leave a poem or learn how to bind poems into a signature mini-booklet.
• Community Commons Ideas & Resource Marketplace (Feb. 28 at Bernie Morelli Recreation Centre) and the Indigenous Marketplace (Mar. 1 at L’Arche Hamilton’s Inclusion Coffeehouse, in the rec centre). Community Commons offers a chance to learn about the services and activities of local businesses, creatives and community organizations. The Indigenous Marketplace will feature traditional craft and beadwork to contemporary jewelry and functional gift items made by local Indigenous makers, artists and entrepreneurs.

Theatre Aquarius is also home to several professional development initiatives and exciting works-in-progress, including their own Brave New Works Festival – happening in parallel with Frost Bites.

“It’s a true pleasure to welcome the opening weekend of Frost Bites to Theatre Aquarius alongside our annual Brave New Works Festival. Bringing these festivals together lets the whole building come alive as audiences move through it and discover new work, while celebrating bold new voices and the artists creating in every corner of the theatre.”

– Mary Francis Moore, Artistic Director of Theatre Aquarius

Week two program (March 6 – 8)

Frost Bites will put live indie theatre back in the site-specific spotlight with form-busting immersive performances in the weird nooks and crannies of The Staircase Theatre + Lounge with short plays, film and live interludes. Performances are repeated multiple times each evening. See the specific nightly schedule and the list of shows for details. Performances include:

• • A Series of Forms You Are Required to Fill Out by Devin Bateson. Due to budget cuts, the last and only city employee is tasked with keeping this city running.
  • Wherefore (Diana?) by TransgendantCo. Princess Diana leads a participatory balcony performance with the audience as the royal family – queering spectacle, power and “home” through looking, being seen and refusal.
  • How to Cook like a Starving Artist by SPICEBOX. A kitchen sink production of a new play dealing with food, poverty and the aestheticification of cooking.
  • Benchmarks by Fareh Malik. A spoken word poetry performance that explores intergenerational dialogue, cultural navigation and immigrant identities.
  • Asinabka by Bawaadan Collective. A series of Indigenous short films curated and presented by Bawaadan Collective.
  • Mahi on the Mountain by Triple Futures. An interactive play inviting audiences into a young Hamiltonian’s bedroom, where a detective-led investigation is unsettled by a haunting presence.
  • Romeo & Juliet: Not ‘Gnomeo & Juliet’ by Eric Cinnsealach. A solo physical clown show about a desperate gnome attempting to perform Romeo and Juliet entirely by himself.
  • The Paranormal Parlour LIVE by Ghosts Are Everywhere. Join your fave unserious ghost gals LIVE for one night only in their Victorian parlour as they share some local stories of spirits and spectres.
  • A Ton of Chatter by Anna Chatterton. Anna Chatterton speaks words along with a familiar face or two (familiar to Anna, not you, probably).
  • The Job Interview by Chidera Ikewibe (CHI*IKE). She is perhaps the worst woman for the job… but she will apply anyway!

Hamilton Festival Theatre Company brings together all the elements that have made Frost Bites one of Hamilton’s most anticipated winter traditions. Frost Bites’ 2026 edition is their most exciting festival yet, featuring 112 artists in total!

About Hamilton Festival Theatre Company

Hamilton Festival Theatre Company (HFTco) is a not-for-profit charitable organization that presents the Hamilton Fringe and Frost Bites festivals. They’re committed to training, platforming and amplifying Hamilton’s theatre artists and storytellers. Since 2003, they’ve been building a community for artists and arts lovers, and cultivating work that is accessible, innovative and artistically adventurous.

(Photo credits: Hamilton Festival Theatre Company. Frost Bites. Photo by Alex Jacobs-Blum. This photo also appears on the Events page.)

 

Event details

Presented by: Hamilton Festival Theatre Company 

Type of event: theatre festival

Dates & times: Friday, February 27 – Sunday, March 8, 2026. The festival takes place from Friday – Sunday over two consecutive weekends. Please see the schedule for exact dates & times.

Duration: Varies – please consult individual performances/events for running times.

Cost: Prices vary – ranging from Free, Pay-what-you-can, C$15.00 – $30.00. Please consult the schedule for your performance/event pricing.

Locations: Please consult the schedule for exact performance/event location (all locations are in Hamilton, ON, Canada).

• Theatre Aquarius, 190 King William Street, Hamilton, ON, L8R 1A8
• Bernie Morelli Recreation Centre, 876 Cannon Street East, Hamilton, ON, L8L 0C6 (L’Arche Hamilton’s Inclusion Coffeehouse is also located here)
• The Staircase Theatre + Lounge, 27 Dundurn Street North, Hamilton, ON, L8R 3C9

Booking link: Book your tickets here by selecting the performance/event you wish to attend.

Contact details: Hamilton Festival Theatre Company; Box office: (289) 698-2234, boxoffice@hftco.ca, hftco.ca

 

Content warning: Programming is available for all ages. Please consult individual performances/events for age ratings.

Accessibility: Theatre Aquarius info here. Bernie Morelli Recreation Centre accessibility info here. At the Staircase Theatre + Lounge (info here), there is an accessible ramp and access to the main area through the back parking lot.