Essen 1887 is the world's first mixed reality journey through time in which the audience meet historic and fictional characters as three-dimensional holograms while walking through the town centre of Essen. Innkeeper Hannes has a busy day ahead as more and more people are coming to the city. Alfred Krupp, the industrial magnate and head of Krupp Steel, the major employer in the city, has died and the funeral is about to take place. On his way to the inn Hannes not only meets the audience but also historical characters like Wilhelmine Grillo. Her husband Friedrich, big industrialist as well, wants to build the very first theatre of the region as a gift for Essen. Sadly, due to his poor health, he is in a sanatorium and his wife Wilhelmine is left alone with the massive task. Great changes are lying ahead for her just as for most citizens. But when she meets clever and crafty Hannes an unusual friendship begins.