THE INVISIBLE HAND

A GRIPPING DRAMA

by Pulitzer-winning playwright Ayad Akhtar

Directed by Clifford Dean

5 September – 1 November 2025

You’re kidnapped by terrorists and the only way out is to raise your own ransom money – by beating the stock market.

When American banker Nick Bright is captured by an Islamic militant group in Pakistan, his prospects are grim. Mistaken for his boss, he holds little strategic value, and no one is coming to negotiate his release. Alone in his cell, Nick has two assets that just might save him: his sharp mind and a deep understanding of global finance. In a desperate attempt, he offers to raise his own ransom money – all $10 million – by manipulating the market.

The Pulitzer Prize winner Ayad Akhtar (THE WHO AND THE WHAT) has done it again: THE INVISIBLE HAND is an intelligently layered play that probes the intersection of human survival, capitalism, and geopolitics. Drawing its title from the famous concept coined by Scottish philosopher Adam Smith, the play gives theatrical form to the invisible forces that shape global economics – and leaves the audience pondering a haunting question:

Are we prisoners of the system of our own making?

PRESS FOR THE INVISIBLE HAND

Hamburger Abendblatt “THE INVISIBLE HAND ist nichts für schwache Nerven, aber ein fantastisch gespielter, sehenswerter Abend.” // “THE INVISIBLE HAND is not for the faint-hearted, but it is a fantastically performed evening that is well worth seeing.”

Theaterzeit Hamburg “überzeugend inszeniert und von dem vierköpfigen Ensemble fantastisch gespielt” // “convincingly staged and fantastically performed by the four-member ensemble.”

Die Auswärtige Presse e. V. “a hostage drama performed by a quartet of outstanding actors“

Ganz Hamburg “vier exzellente Darsteller […] zu Recht mit standing ovations belohnt // four excellent performers […] rightly rewarded with standing ovations “