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Factory International will stage An Ark, a mixed reality theatre play starring Ian McKellen, at Aviva Studios in Manchester from 27 March to 10 April 2027.
Each audience member wears mixed reality glasses. McKellen, Golda Rosheuvel, Arinzé Kene and Rosie Sheehy appear as recorded, life-size figures seated in front of the viewer. None of the four is in the building.
The play ran at The Shed in New York from January 2026. Factory International calls the Manchester run the play’s European debut.
Tin Drum, the New York mixed reality studio of producer Todd Eckert, made An Ark. Tin Drum also made KAGAMI, the Ryuichi Sakamoto concert. Simon Stephens wrote the play and Sarah Frankcom directed it.
The cast rehearsed in London. They were then filmed on a volumetric capture system built by 4DViews in Grenoble, France.
In the venue, the recorded actors appear in four wooden chairs. Viewers see the rest of the audience through the glasses.
John McGrath, chief executive of Factory International, told the Guardian the glasses “project into the space but also show the real world you are in.” Goggles, he said, “exclude the physical reality you’re in.”
The Shed and Tin Drum opened An Ark in The Shed’s Level 2 Gallery on 9 January 2026. The Shed billed it as the first play created for mixed reality. The run was set to close on 1 March and was extended to 4 April.
Each performance seated up to 200 people in the gallery, one seated audience per showing.
Jonathan Mandell, reviewing An Ark for New York Theater, wrote that the technology was “not there yet in achieving a credible sense of intimacy.”
An Ark plays The Hall at Aviva Studios, Factory International’s venue in Manchester. Showings run from 27 to 30 March and from 1 to 10 April 2027, several a day. Seating is general admission.
Standard tickets cost £31.50 and £36.50, plus a booking fee. Concessions take up to 25% off, and Aviva £10 Tickets are held for people on low incomes. General sale opens on 20 October 2026.
Tin Drum and Factory International co-produce the Manchester run. Factory International says KAGAMI sold out at Manchester International Festival in 2023. Factory International also plans public events on the future and ethics of mixed reality.
Venue programmers can book An Ark with no cast on site, since the four actors were recorded in Grenoble. Operators can price the seated glasses format against Manchester’s £31.50 and £36.50 tickets and New York’s ceiling of 200 seats a performance.
What is mixed reality theatre in An Ark? Audiences wear mixed reality glasses and see four recorded actors seated in front of them. The venue and the rest of the audience stay visible. Ian McKellen, Golda Rosheuvel, Arinzé Kene and Rosie Sheehy star.
When does the An Ark mixed reality theatre run open in Manchester? Showings run at The Hall, Aviva Studios, from 27 to 30 March and from 1 to 10 April 2027. Factory International lists several showings a day.
How much are tickets for An Ark at Aviva Studios? Standard tickets cost £31.50 and £36.50, plus a booking fee. Concessions and Aviva £10 Tickets are available. General sale opens on 20 October 2026.
How many people watched each performance in New York? Up to 200 per performance, seated in The Shed’s Level 2 Gallery. The New York run lasted from 9 January to 4 April 2026.
Who made the mixed reality play An Ark? Tin Drum, Todd Eckert’s mixed reality studio, produced it. Simon Stephens wrote it and Sarah Frankcom directed it. The actors were captured in Grenoble on a 4DViews volumetric system.
