Vertige, Manhattan Transfert: Immersive Theater in Paris

Step into the pages of one of the great American novels of the interwar period with "Vertige, Manhattan Transfert," an immersive theatrical experience directed by Léonard Matton. Based on John Dos Passos's 1925 novel *Manhattan Transfer*, this production transforms Chaillot – Théâtre national de la Danse into a sprawling "city-play" where twelve actresses embody a multitude of characters, from actress Ellen Thatcher to journalist Jimmy Herf and French anarchist Congo Jake. Audiences are free to move through multiple stages, exploring a living fresco of early 20th-century New York.

The experience is a sensory journey blending live jazz, video mapping, and cutting-edge technology. The production incorporates three technologies popularized in the 1920s—the loudspeaker, the telephone, and cinema—while also confronting contemporary issues through generative AI. With songs, choreography, silent films, and AI-driven elements, the show draws connections between the past and present, creating a dizzying, immersive portrait of a city in constant flux. Matton's company Emersiøn previously staged immersive works like *Helsingør, château d'Hamlet* (2018) and *Le Fléau, mesure pour mesure* (2023).