In April 2023, collaboration began between Lincoln Arts Centre (Anderson), Lincoln School of Creative Arts (Sanchez and Smith) and the National Centre for Food Manufacturing (Crewe), all based within the University of Lincoln. The aim was to bring extraordinary science to life in a 50-minute performative, educational lecture for schoolchildren and families called Science: Live on Stage. Over a period of seven months, a script was written, a theatrical vision was devised, and plans for set/props (Chambers), lighting (Marcinek and Bradbury), animation (Peverill) and sound (Cable) were developed and rehearsed.  This activity culminated in a publicly facing run of shows in November/December 2023.  The script focused on how scientific understanding of microbiology has advanced through time starting with the Big Bang through the development of microorganisms, the discovery of Escherichia coli, the role that E. coli plays in human health and disease, and its importance as a laboratory model now and into the future.  Throughout the show, the narrator-lecturer (Crewe) was ‘helped’ by a somewhat clumsy ‘lab assistant’ (Sanchez) who engaged the audience via interactive means: bringing volunteers onto stage for demonstrations, sharing sweets and ‘making mistakes’ which the narrator had to correct.   Audience testimonies included “I never thought I’d belly laugh at microbiology” and “I wish my students would be this enthusiastic in school, I’ve never seen them so excited”. The project has now developed into an annual series produced by LAC: the 2024 show was about the human brain, the 2025 show is about sport science.