In our ongoing Edinburgh Fringe interview series, we are speaking to artists and creatives who are bringing their shows to the Scottish capital this summer.
In this interview, creative director and founder of La Mecànica Jenny Vila discusses their show A Teen Odyssey
What can you tell me in your words about your show?
A Teen Odyssey is an immersive physical theatre experience where, instead of asking the audience to sit still and turn their phones off, we invite them to move, interact, and connect - phone in hand. The performance becomes a space where generations meet, perceptions shift, and something unexpected happens when you look up from your phone and truly see someone else, whether they’re like you, or someone you thought you had nothing in common with.
Where did the inspiration for this piece come from?
The spark came during the pandemic, when we realised how few spaces truly gave teenagers the opportunity to be heard, especially during a time when they were isolated, hidden behind screens, and going through one of the most complex chapters of life. We’d just made The Little Things, a show centred on the voices of children aged 7-11, and it became clear there was another chapter to write. Not about teenagers, but with them.
The spark came during the pandemic, when we realised how few spaces truly gave teenagers the opportunity to be heard, especially during a time when they were isolated, hidden behind screens, and going through one of the most complex chapters of life. We’d just made The Little Things, a show centred on the voices of children aged 7-11, and it became clear there was another chapter to write. Not about teenagers, but with them.
How have you approached developing the show?
We created it with teenagers involved at every stage, with a professional team including a psychologist, to make sure it was true to the subject matter and not just our idea of each generation imposed on them. Their voices, ideas, and contradictions shaped every layer of the work - from its themes to its tone.
We created it with teenagers involved at every stage, with a professional team including a psychologist, to make sure it was true to the subject matter and not just our idea of each generation imposed on them. Their voices, ideas, and contradictions shaped every layer of the work - from its themes to its tone.
Everywhere we perform we work with teenagers from that place (shout-out to Tynecastle High School in Edinburgh) to record new material that becomes part of the show’s soundscape. We also ask a professional actor who is a native speaker to voice the inquisitive virtual application … in the UK we are indebted to our wonderful friend Maxine Peake for lending us her amazing voice!
How would you describe the style of the show?
A Teen Odyssey is immersive, physical, and unapologetically contemporary. It blends movement, sound, light, and digital interaction to create a living, shifting experience. There’s no stage, no fourth wall, and no passive watching. The audience moves through the space with their phones, guided by prompts, audio, and live performance. It’s part theatre, part installation, part generational encounter. The style is fluid, inclusive, and designed to reflect the world of teenagers - messy, honest, contradictory, and full of surprising beauty.
A Teen Odyssey is immersive, physical, and unapologetically contemporary. It blends movement, sound, light, and digital interaction to create a living, shifting experience. There’s no stage, no fourth wall, and no passive watching. The audience moves through the space with their phones, guided by prompts, audio, and live performance. It’s part theatre, part installation, part generational encounter. The style is fluid, inclusive, and designed to reflect the world of teenagers - messy, honest, contradictory, and full of surprising beauty.
Can you describe the show in 3 words?
Immersive, multigenerational, uplifting
Immersive, multigenerational, uplifting
How do you mentally and physically prepare for a run like the Fringe?
Fringe is a marathon, not a sprint, so we treat it like training for a team endurance event. Physically, it’s about rest, fuel, and pacing ourselves. Mentally, it’s about holding onto purpose: remembering why we’re doing this show and who we’re doing it with. Working with local teens in every city keeps it fresh, their voices bring new life to the piece each time. And as a team, we check in constantly, celebrate small wins, and make time for food, laughter, and moments of quiet. It’s about stamina, sure - but also softness. Fringe tests everything, so we try to arrive strong and stay kind.
Fringe is a marathon, not a sprint, so we treat it like training for a team endurance event. Physically, it’s about rest, fuel, and pacing ourselves. Mentally, it’s about holding onto purpose: remembering why we’re doing this show and who we’re doing it with. Working with local teens in every city keeps it fresh, their voices bring new life to the piece each time. And as a team, we check in constantly, celebrate small wins, and make time for food, laughter, and moments of quiet. It’s about stamina, sure - but also softness. Fringe tests everything, so we try to arrive strong and stay kind.
Away from your show, what are you most looking forward to about being in Edinburgh?
We’re excited to meet and collaborate with Edinburgh’s teenagers, to welcome them into our ever-growing global family of young people who’ve helped shape A Teen Odyssey. Every city brings new voices, new stories, and new sparks that make the show come alive in unexpected ways. Also, seeing how many of us accidentally cry during an early morning flyer handout in the rain. It’s the Fringe - we came for the art, but we stay for the strangely beautiful madness of it all.
We’re excited to meet and collaborate with Edinburgh’s teenagers, to welcome them into our ever-growing global family of young people who’ve helped shape A Teen Odyssey. Every city brings new voices, new stories, and new sparks that make the show come alive in unexpected ways. Also, seeing how many of us accidentally cry during an early morning flyer handout in the rain. It’s the Fringe - we came for the art, but we stay for the strangely beautiful madness of it all.
Are there any other shows at the Fringe you’d like to recommend?
It is such an honour to be at Summerhall, home of some of the greatest international work every year, so go crazy there! Also some of the companies that we feel are on the same artistic journey as us, from Ontroerend Goed to Cliff Cardinal. I’ll also go and see William Kentridge’s Faustus in Africa, just because!What was the first piece of theatre you saw which had a big impact on you?
La Fura dels Baus, the incredible Catalan punk theatre provocateurs, first in Barcelona and then in London. Along with De La Guarda, they changed the way audiences engaged with performance, and created visceral spectacle that inspired and at times scared us all. When we discovered that they’d taken that audience-controlling urgency into an app that could take control of the mobile phones of audiences of up to 50,000 people, we thought “how could we use that for a smaller scale, totally responsive show, with an audience of just 50 people?”.
La Fura dels Baus, the incredible Catalan punk theatre provocateurs, first in Barcelona and then in London. Along with De La Guarda, they changed the way audiences engaged with performance, and created visceral spectacle that inspired and at times scared us all. When we discovered that they’d taken that audience-controlling urgency into an app that could take control of the mobile phones of audiences of up to 50,000 people, we thought “how could we use that for a smaller scale, totally responsive show, with an audience of just 50 people?”.
What do you hope an audience member takes away from seeing the show?
A tempered pride in their generation, an understanding and appreciation of other generations, and an increased belief in the young people we are handing the world to.
A tempered pride in their generation, an understanding and appreciation of other generations, and an increased belief in the young people we are handing the world to.
Where and when can people see your show?
You can catch A Teen Odyssey at the Dissection Room, Summerhall, from 31 July to 25 August, with performances daily at 12:00 and 13:30 - except on 11 and 18 August!
You can catch A Teen Odyssey at the Dissection Room, Summerhall, from 31 July to 25 August, with performances daily at 12:00 and 13:30 - except on 11 and 18 August!
Post a Comment