Name: Departure Lounge 2026
Start: 2026-07-02
End: 2026-07-04
Location: Derby Theatre

Contents

When, where and how much
What to expect at Departure Lounge 2026
Access and booking details to check before you go

Derby’s cultural calendar gains a significant boost this summer as Departure Lounge 2026 returns to Derby Theatre for three days of fringe performance, workshops and industry conversation.

The festival runs from Thursday 2 July to Saturday 4 July 2026 at Derby Theatre, 15 Theatre Walk, St Peter’s Quarter, Derby, DE1 2NF. Specific daily start and finish times have not been listed in the source information, so visitors should check the booking page before making plans. Passes are priced at £50 for a Weekend Festival Pass and £28.50 for a Festival Day Pass, with tickets available through the Visit Derby website.

Aimed at theatre enthusiasts, artists and general audiences, Departure Lounge is being presented as Derby’s Fringe Theatre Festival, with a programme built around new theatre, fringe previews, workshops and discussion about the wider theatre landscape.

When, where and how much

Detail	Information
Event	Departure Lounge 2026
Dates	Thursday 2 July to Saturday 4 July 2026
Venue	Derby Theatre, 15 Theatre Walk, St Peter’s Quarter, Derby, DE1 2NF
Times	Not specified in the source listing; check before booking
Tickets	Weekend Festival Pass £50; Festival Day Pass £28.50
Booking	Via the Visit Derby website
Contact	Derby Theatre box office: 01332 59 39 39

For local audiences, the setting is central: Derby Theatre sits in the St Peter’s Quarter, making the festival easy to combine with a wider city-centre visit. The published pass options also give audiences a simple choice between dipping into a single day or following the festival across the full three-day run.

What to expect at Departure Lounge 2026

The festival’s 2026 programme is built around the kind of work usually associated with fringe settings: new ideas, experimental forms and artists testing what theatre can be. Visit Derby’s event listing describes three days of the Midlands’ new theatre scene, with bold ideas, fresh voices and artists shaping what comes next.

Among the confirmed highlights are hands-on workshops with Common/Wealth and Punchdrunk Enrichment. For audience members who are also makers, students or early-career artists, those sessions are likely to be one of the more practical reasons to attend, offering direct contact with companies linked to immersive and boundary-pushing performance.

The programme also includes exclusive fringe previews, including an appearance from Selina Mosinski of Charity Shop Sue fame. Alongside the performance work, Departure Lounge 2026 will host an industry panel discussion where leading voices and Midlands artists unpack the theatre landscape as it stands now. That makes the festival useful not only as a night out, but as a snapshot of where regional theatre is heading.

Access and booking details to check before you go

Accessibility is a central part of this year’s published event information. Departure Lounge 2026 is described by the organisers as “more accessible than ever before”, with BSL-interpreted and integrated performances and events, audio-described shows, and fully wheelchair-accessible festival spaces throughout Derby Theatre.

Because exact performance times and individual access arrangements may vary across the three days, visitors should verify the details for the specific sessions they want to attend before booking. Visit Derby also notes that event details are sourced from organisers, advertisers and partners, and recommends checking information directly with the event host or facilitator before making bookings or travel plans.

Tickets are available through the Visit Derby website. For accessibility enquiries, session timings or box office support, contact Derby Theatre on 01332 59 39 39.

Source: Visit Derby Events