Invisible Cities

This epic production grew out of a conversation between Leo Warner, CEO of 59 Productions, and me around what might be an interesting jumping off point for a production of scale, where design sat at the very heart of the creative process. Just over a year later, Invisible Cities had its world premiere in a vast, disused train station in Manchester as part of the Manchester International Festival. 

The phenomenal creative team included almost the entire 20-strong design team at 59 Productions, choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, writer Lolita Chakrabarti, and Rambert, one of the best dance companies in the world. 

Centred on the edgy relationship between Kublai Khan, the volatile head of a vast empire, and explorer Marco Polo, who must transcend a language barrier to describe it for him, this spellbinding mix of theatre, choreography, music, architectural design and projection mapping imagined a succession of alternative worlds – and reimagined what is possible in live performance.