Chat Noir! Brings Belle Époque Paris to West Kensington

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Immersive cabaret, illusion and burlesque at The Lost Estate

Audiences are invited to step through a hidden doorway into Montmartre in 1896

March 9, 2026

An immersive theatrical experience inspired by the legendary Parisian cabaret Le Chat Noir is coming to West Kensington this spring, as immersive theatre specialists The Lost Estate unveil their most ambitious production yet.

Opening on 24 March in the converted mannequin factory next to the tube station, Chat Noir! invites audiences to step through a hidden doorway into Montmartre in 1896, recreating the bohemian nightclub that helped give birth to modern cabaret culture.

The production blends live music, theatre, circus, illusion and fine dining, recreating the anarchic artistic world of the original Paris venue where poets, painters and performers gathered in the late nineteenth century.

At the centre of the show is the charismatic impresario Rodolphe Salis, the real-life founder of Le Chat Noir, played by London cabaret performer Joe Morose. Morose, described by critics as the “Dandy King of Cabaret”, returns for his third collaboration with The Lost Estate after appearing in 58th Street and Paradise Under the Stars. His performance anchors a cast drawn from the worlds of cabaret, burlesque, magic and physical theatre.

Left: Joe Morose as Rodolphe Salis, the real-life founder of Le Chat Noir. Right: Burlesque performer Coco Belle takes on the role of Cléo de Mérode

Joining him is Neil Kelso, a concert pianist, illusionist and member of the Magic Circle, who appears as the celebrated French magician Buatier De Kolta. Classic burlesque performer Coco Belle takes on the role of Belle Époque dancer Cléo de Mérode, often described as one of the first modern celebrity icons. Mime and physical theatre artist Alexander Luttley portrays the influential French mime Paul LeGrand, while performer and producer Issy Wroe Wright appears as the cabaret singer and actress Yvette Guilbert.

They are joined by the troupe of musicians known as Les Enfants Vagabondes, performing new arrangements of French late-Romantic music to provide the soundtrack to the evening. Additional performers include Secret Cinema regular David Alwyn, fire and magic specialist Pat Magus, movement artist Duane Nasis and musical theatre vocalist Ruby Olivia Hewitt.

The production will be staged at The Lost Estate’s purpose-built immersive venue, a large theatrical space designed specifically for the company’s historically inspired productions. Rather than a conventional theatre with fixed seating, the venue is arranged as a fully realised environment in which the audience sits within the action. Guests typically arrive through discreet entrances before being led into richly designed interiors that recreate a particular historical setting.

The company has become known for transforming the venue into detailed theatrical worlds ranging from 1930s New York jazz clubs to Victorian dining salons and 1950s Havana nightlife. For Chat Noir! the space will be reimagined as a lively Montmartre cabaret with candlelit tables, musicians moving among the audience and performers appearing throughout the room as the story unfolds.

The evening combines theatre with hospitality, with themed cocktails and dining designed to evoke the atmosphere of Belle Époque Paris. The show centres on Rodolphe Salis preparing the final and most extravagant revue at his club, a celebration of art, decadence and creative chaos at the height of the Parisian bohemian scene.

The Lost Estate’s co-founder Eddy Hackett said the production is intended to be the company’s most immersive experience yet. Morose said portraying Salis carried special significance, describing the historical impresario as “part impresario, part poet, part car crash” whose cabaret became a meeting place for some of the greatest artists of the age.

Tickets and further information are available at chatnoirlondon.com.

 

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