A Suitcase Opens. A World Appears.

Want the full origin story of how Co-Stars came to be? I’ve written about all three sparks that led to this — from a childhood record player to a manga museum in Kyoto — over in Co-Stars: Where Sound Meets Story. Start there if you’re new to Co-Stars — then come back here.

A New Kind of Storytime.

I’m bringing Co-Stars to Brisbane’s Anywhere Festival 2026 — and I genuinely can’t wait. Co-Stars: Storytime LIVE! performs at The Raven, West End, with tickets opening 28 March.

It’s something I’ve been building toward for a while, and this feels like exactly the right place to share it. Co-Stars draws on Kamishibai — a centuries-old Japanese tradition of street storytelling, where performers would travel town to town with illustrated boards and tell stories to the children who gathered around.

In my version, the wooden stage becomes a travelling suitcase. It opens. Illustrated story images appear, one by one, as the tale unfolds — each picture a window into Jules Verne’s world of space travel, with a steampunk twist. And at the moments that matter, the audience doesn’t just watch. They participate. Children provide the live sound effects, the vocal reactions, the energy that makes the story real.

And the suitcases themselves? They hold more than illustrated cards. At a certain point in the show, the lights go out — don’t worry, the soft glow of your devices and a warm lamp will guide you — and what happens next is the kind of moment that (I'm hoping) stays with a child long after the story ends. Something between wonder and magic. The sort of thing that is genuinely better discovered in the room.

“Co-Stars is about the moment a child realises the story needs them. They’re not just watching — they’re the reason the rocket launches.” — Nathan Schulz, creator and performer

The show is based on Jules Verne’s classic adventure, reimagined for audiences aged three to twelve. Ticket holders receive a free download of the Co-Stars Join In Edition eBook — so families can follow along, with the illustrated story, and know exactly when it’s their moment to participate.

https://video.wixstatic.com/https://video.wixstatic.com/video/585363_fbef42d38ae84588957b47f4f748d19c/file

Beyond the Stage - Co-Stars at Home

Co-Stars is also a growing suite of products designed to bring the same participatory storytelling experience into homes, classrooms, and libraries:

Free Audio Screensaver — The complete story plays as an atmospheric screensaver on YouTube — ambient visuals with the full audio behind it. Free, no subscription required. Perfect for setting the scene before a live session, or just letting it wash over you.

Join in Edition eBook — A child’s performance script with illustrated story images and live sound effect cues, designed to be used alongside the YouTube audio.

Cheat Sheets — A practical quick-reference guide for parents, educators, and carers running Co-Stars sessions.

And coming soon — a video of me telling you the story and cueing you through the sound effects, just like the live show. Plus a Co-Stars Vocal Charades card game, with grow packs releasing alongside each new story so you can build your own weird and wonderful vocal soundscapes.

Upcoming titles in the Co-Stars series include Journey to the Centre of the Earth, Winnie the Pooh, Halloween & Christmas Specials, and the original story Cats From Outer Space.

How it all started

Co-Stars grew from a decade of participatory storytelling — beginning with a Golden Age of Radio workshop program I delivered in schools and outside school hours care programs across Queensland, where children became the live sound effects for classic radio plays.

Everything shifted when I visited a manga museum in Kyoto and encountered Kamishibai for the first time: performers cycling from town to town, opening a wooden stage to reveal illustrated boards, telling stories to whoever gathered.

I already performed with suitcases. The connection was immediate. The suitcase became the stage. The illustrated images inside became the world.

“I already had the suitcases. Standing in that museum, I saw exactly how they could become something more — a portable stage, a world that unfolds wherever you put them down.” — Nathan Schulz

Start the adventure - right now.

If you have a young child in your life — or know someone who does — I’d love for you to come and be part of it. Or start right now: the full story is free on YouTube, the Join In Edition eBook is waiting, and the Cheat Sheets will have you running your own Co-Stars session in no time.

The suitcase is packed. The story is ready.

🎫 Get Tickets — Anywhere Festival 2026 (Early bird release until April 3rd)

▶ Listen Free on YouTube — From the Earth to the Moon and Back

⬇ Download the Join In Edition eBook

⬇ Get the Co-Stars Cheat Sheets

I’m Nathan Schulz, The Drama Merchant.

And this is Theatre, just not as you know it.