The 12th Shanghai International Comedy Festival will run from Nov 11, 2026, to Jan 31, 2027, featuring 300 performances across more than 50 productions from China and abroad.

The festival's international section will showcase several productions making their Asian debuts, including Brazilian puppet theater company Giramundo's Alice in Wonderland, which will be staged at the Lyceum Theatre as part of the 2026 China-Brazil Year of Culture. The production features 55 puppets performing alongside live actors.

French comedy Entre 2, which has appeared at the Avignon Off Festival, follows two people trapped in a malfunctioning elevator, where misunderstandings fuel the humor. An experimental adaptation of Alfred Jarry's Ubu Roi combines clowning, finger puppetry, and video to explore the absurdities of power.

Other international performances include The Nature of Forgetting from the United Kingdom and Shakespearology and La Supercasalinga from Italy.

A screening section will revisit productions from the festival's first decade, including works by Shakespeare and Moliere, alongside productions from Britain's National Theatre. Titles include Twelfth Night, One Man, Two Guvnors, The Learned Ladies, and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, offering audiences another chance to see stage productions on screen.

International highlights:

Alice in Wonderland

Brazilian puppet theater company Giramundo brings 55 puppets and live actors together to recreate the fantastical world. Presented as part of the 2026 China-Brazil Year of Culture, the production made its Asian debut in Shanghai. It completes the Mestre Alvaro trilogy associated with Giramundo founder Alvaro Apocalypse.

When: Oct 21, 7:30 pm

Where: Lyceum Theatre, No 57 South Maoming Road, Huangpu district

Entre 2

An accountant and a pharmaceutical sales representative become trapped in a malfunctioning elevator in this two-person comedy by France's La Bande a Chapelle. As rescue is delayed, anxiety, misunderstandings and contrasting personalities generate unexpected humor. The production appeared at the Avignon Off Festival for three consecutive years and will make its Asian debut in Shanghai.

When: Jan 22-23, 2027

Where: Lyceum Theatre, No 57 South Maoming Road, Huangpu district

Ubu Roi

France's Compagnie Le Commun des Mortels reimagines Alfred Jarry's 1896 play through clowning, finger puppetry, everyday objects and video. Its grotesque ruler inhabits a world of greed, violence and absurd ambition, bringing the play's satire of power into a contemporary theatrical setting. The production forms part of the Festival Croisements program.

When: Dec 16 to 19, 7:30 pm

Where: Jasmine Theatre, No 247 Beihai Road, Huangpu district

Sources:The Paper,Shanghai Observer,Shanghai International Comedy Festival