Lear, Bard of the Street is a site-specific performance that reimagines Shakespeare’s King Lear on the streets of contemporary Frankfurt. In this adaptation, Lear and his three daughters appear as unhoused wanderers navigating the city’s public spaces, turning the urban environment into their stage. The conceptual frame centers on urban disorientation, exile, and public visibility: as the characters roam from crowded plazas to quiet corners, they grapple with feeling lost, displaced, and unseen in a bustling metropolis. They pose seemingly simple but existential questions to passersby asking where they are, which direction to go, and who they are in the eyes of others—in a search for orientation and belonging amid the city’s indifferent flow.

In form, the performance is participatory and dialogic, directly engaging the public in conversation. Onlookers become part of the experience, often responding to Lear’s questions or offering directions as the characters move through the space blurring the line between spectator and participant. The piece also features a layered use of language and space: German and Persian dialogue interweave with fragments of poetry, and city-specific references root the narrative in Frankfurt’s streets. Physical movement are integrated with the spoken interactions, making the city environment not just a backdrop but an active element in the storytelling. The result is an immersive, multi-layered public encounter that merges interactive theater with the everyday urban landscape.