The Invisible City
Tortoise in a Nutshell in co-production with German theatre company Theatre Grüne Sosse
a fantastical show that stretches beyond the confines of theatre, asking how we want to live together in a divided world.
premieres in Frankfurt, Germany in September 2026.
A teenage girl arrives in a new city where everything is strange, she fills her sketch book with everything she encounters:
a boy on a scooter with his head in the clouds, a dancing pigeon, a runway model strutting the high street…
The Invisible City follows a teenage girl as she navigates a new city that transforms and unfolds, revealing weird and wonderful stories. Will she ever belong to this city? And can it ever belong to her?
Tortoise in a Nutshell and Theatre Grüne Sosse create a life-sized pop-up picture book with with inventive imagery and surprising transformations, for everyone aged eight and above, to explore belonging, imagination and the true meaning of home.
A new international co-production of Tortoise in a Nutshell and Theatre Grüne Sosse, The Invisible City premieres in Frankfurt, Germany on the 3 September 2026, with work in progress at Lyra Edinburgh in August 2026.
Touring
19 - 20 August 2026: School runs & previews at Lyra, Edinburgh, Scotland
3 - 8 September 2026: Junge Theaterwerkstatt am Zo, Frankfurt, Germany
Accessibility
Recommended for ages 8+
Credits
Concept & Performance: Alex Bird, Arran Howie, Ossian Hain, Liljan Halfen.
Composition and Sound Design: Jim Harbourne, Amelie Neumann.
Lighting Design: Simon Wilkinson.
Set Construction and Props: Guy Bishop, Valerie Reid, Zev Attwood, Ross Napier, Simone von Matthey, Hanna Keinath, Leo Witte.
Costumes: Viviane Niebling.
Artistic Collaboration: Isla Bird.
Technical Staff Germany: Lars Löffler, Gabriel Frevert.
Theatre Education: Lisa Williamson, Verena Specht-Ronique.
Assistant Director: Hanna Keinath.
Producers: Fiona Louis, Kirsten McPake, Michelle Gerhardt, Irene Gomer
