Edinburgh technology incubator to become pop-up Fringe venue

Codebase, the Edinburghbased firm which has grown to become Europe’s biggest tech incubator, is to become a Fringe venue.

A futuristic show which will use virtual reality headsets to transport audiences to the depths of the Great Barrier Reef will be unveiled in its headquarters overlooking Edinburgh Castle.

The Traverse Theatre is joining forces with Codebase, which is home to more than 90 start-up firms employing around 600 people, to help stage one of its world premieres this August.

Norwich-based theatre company Curious Directive is creating the “multi-sensory” show Frogman, which has been three years in the making, but will be performed to an audience of just 30 at a time.

The “coming-of-age thriller,” which is said to combine live theatre with 360 film has involved underwater shoots in Australia and Indonesia and will feature more than 30 actors, although just one will appear on stage at Codebase, which has more than quadrupled in size since 2014. Marine biologists and scientists have acted as advisers on the show, which looks at the ongoing damage being done to coral reefs.

Frogman will be going on tour around the UK after its world premiere in Edinburgh, including a finale as part of Hull’s UK City of Culture programme.