Living A ‘Live Thriller’ In Paris (REVIEW)
Solving the case of the mysterious Mannequin Man
It is a lovely summer evening in the 18e arrondissement in Paris, just behind Montmartre. But we know we’re not going to sip wine at a terrace tonight. We are here for a much more serious business. We are here to solve a crime.
Our appointment with deputy Paul Gambale — in charge of the investigation — is at 10:30pm at the corner of two little streets of the Clignancourt district. We received an email the day before with very brief instructions.
Our little group of friends is eager to start the adventure. We just know what we read on The Live Thriller website: 9 missing persons, a deranged serial killer who recreates the crime scenes with mannequins in the most bizarre way…
Our mysterious deputy shows up quickly and calls me from across the street. He seems nervous and a bit suspicious.
“What do you know about the Mannequin Man ?” he asks. Not much, unfortunately.
“Can I trust you and your friends ?” Yes sir !
We are introduced into his little hideout where he works on the case. A couch, a table and a few chairs, and the walls covered in newspapers cuts in a small dim light room. It looks like we stepped into a David Fincher movie.
Paul Gambale quickly sets the tone: we’re not here to play around, he needs us to be 100% concentrated to find the serial killer ! His energy is cohesive and establishes a group dynamic immediately. After a quick brief on the case (and several admonitions on our sloppiness) we are given flashlights, a walkie talkie to stay in contact with him at any time, and a cellphone for instructions.
He leaves us with a cinematographic introduction. At the end, we receive our first phone instruction: a junkie who knows about the killer is close to us, we need to tail him!
And that’s how the adventure begins!
Completely in character, we begin to tail this young junkie — elegantly throwing up in every trash can on his way — to an abandoned shop, the first clue getting us closer to the Mannequin Man…
I will not detail this crazy adventure any further, to keep the mystery alive and the pleasure and thrills of the discovery if you dare to participate to this incredibly bold game theatre!
What you need to know: there is no loser or winner, but your decisions and actions can lead you to one of 4 different endings. Also, trust your instincts.
First of its kind in Paris, The Live Thriller was created by three friends: brothers Joris & Remy Aufray, and Felix Carcone. Specialized in escape game design, music and entrepreneurship, their passion for cinema, video games and music gave them the concept in 2010.
They decided to realize this ambitious project in 2015, starting from scratch, with the desire to create something outside the box, with a strong story, and an audience with big agency and engagement.
The smart thing about The Live Thriller, besides the beautifully detailed sets and the compelling comedians, is that it leaves you with your own fears and limits.
You can chose the amount of people you want to be with (you can book for a party of 3 to 6 people), the time you’re doing the experience (day or night).
The experience lasts about 2 hours and can be — very — intense. The story is smart and complex, and the balance between reality and fiction get thinner by the minute, thanks to a crescendo in the suspense and the murkiness of the places.
You have free agency all the time, and the walkie-talkie and cell phone is an elegant trick to get help and be reassured without that guidance being too present.
You will explore a few different places, including moments in the streets. We stayed in the storyline at all times, and even though we were left by ourselves for long periods of time, we were curious to see what was next and felt the story pushed us.
The Live Thriller is an ambitious, well-thought example of game theatre, where the audience can find entertainment in the pleasure of solving the crime, thrills with the oh-so-detailed sets and a real story that makes you think after about your own fears, about society and that you maybe saw something that could be real…
The Live Thriller is booking now in Paris. Tickets start at 49 euros for a group of six and scale up from there. Note: the experience is in English and French, and is unfortunately not accessible to wheelchairs. We recommend reading all the information and the case description on the website to get a full experience.
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