Event Inspiration: 15 Immersive Theater Moments We're Still Thinking About

The American Horror Story anthology is no stranger to out-of-the-box premieres and promotions. But on one Friday the 13th, FX Networks hosted what was possibly its most terrifying—and ambitious—event yet: an overnight experience at a 110-acre campground deep in the Santa Monica Mountains. The September 2018 event was designed to promote American Horror Story: 1984, which takes place at an ‘80s summer camp. FX worked with longtime collaborators Industria Creative to transform the entire property into an immersive theatrical experience, where improv actors depicted counselors, a groundskeeper, a nurse, and other camp staples. The actors treated the attendees as counselors in training.

"The experience was produced with talented improv actors that were cast to portray select archetypes from the slasher subgenre," explained FX's Kenya Hardaway Green. "It allowed us to keep the guests fully engaged without revealing any key characters ahead of the premiere."

The daylong event started off simple: Jazzercise, arts and crafts, 1980s tunes. But things quickly took an American Horror Story-appropriate turn when a bloodied hiker emerged from the woods. Throughout the rest of the day and night, guests were tormented by a campwide blackout, a chain saw-wielding killer, and other scary twists and turns. Dinner, for example, was served by waitstaff and butchers clad in leather carving masks and leather aprons.

Toward the end of dinner, attendees were surprised by a sudden campwide blackout. Guests headed to a bonfire where the camp director shared the (fictional) history of the land, and were encouraged to tell their own ghost stories. Suddenly, a killer emerged from the woods with his latest victim: one of the event guests who had gone missing earlier in the evening! The evening ended with a marathon of American Horror Story, plus '80s games such as Ouija boards. See more: FX Hosted a Truly Terrifying Overnight Experience for 'American Horror Story: 1984'

In 2020, HBO’s CES presence was a headline-grabbing stunt promoting tech-driven series Westworld. The cable network took over the NoMad restaurant to host a futuristic dining experience that introduced Incite, a fictional tech conglomerate that was featured in the then-upcoming season. The dinner party, which hosted journalists and other industry leaders, was completely customized: Incite’s computers used data points harvested from public databases and guests’ online profiles, and actors portraying hosts had uniquely written scripts using information they’d gathered about each guest. The result was a surreal—and somewhat creepy—experience. As guests left the event, they received a Westworld-branded billfold; inside, a card was filled with details on each guest—including the age that they will die—that were supposedly generated by Incite’s technology.

The stunt was produced by Giant Spoon; Mycotoo collaborated on the immersive theater component. “Fears surrounding data privacy aren’t new, yet to exist in today’s world, we make information about ourselves available every day,” said Giant Spoon co-founder Trevor Guthrie in a press release. “Our intention is to incite a conversation about future implications over dinner—where data is the main ingredient.”

Founded during the pandemic was Codename Burg3r, a Los Angeles-based immersive game experience that was part event, part restaurant, part puzzle, and part theatrical experience—all taking place from a consumer's own dining table. The experience, which cheekily called itself the “best alternate reality burger joint in all the universes,” allowed diners to choose from a variety of burger options, each of which came with its own set of puzzles and clues to solve while eating. Diners then reported back to the appropriately named Bureau for the Unexplained and Non-normal (B.U.N., for short); once the first mission was completed, they could unlock additional games, create their own secret agent avatar, discover hidden objects, and even get access to secret menu items.

The boxes—which, in addition to food, came equipped with props, themed notes, and other fun elements—were delivered to customers’ doors via an actor posing as a secret agency. When asked what he thinks makes an effective immersive theater experience, founder Josh Sugarman noted that it's different for every attendee—and that’s the point. “The audience has to find the thing that makes it magical for them. Create a world big enough that everybody can go find their special nook and cranny and their moments.”

Another key? Commitment to the bit from every staffer on your team. “[At Codename,] everyone gets to make up their own character,” he explained. “These are not necessarily people from the entertainment or theater spaces—they are customer service representatives. On the first day, we say, ‘OK, we need you to come up with a secret agent character,'" he said. “It makes the experience better for the customer at every step.” See more: Meet the New Company Bringing Immersive Theater Events Directly to Consumers' Homes

If you’re a fan of the wildly popular mobile game Merge Mansion—or at least its viral ad campaigns starring the likes of Kathy Bates and, more recently, Pedro Pascal—you’ve probably dreamed of stepping inside its puzzle-filled world. For a few lucky fans, members of the press, and VIPs, that became possible in March 2023.

To coincide with the game’s biggest-ever update, which lets players inside the Boulton family mansion for the first time, game developer Metacore took over a real-life mansion in Los Angeles on the same day. Described as “part live-action theater, part escape room, and part lore museum,” the live experience featured actors playing in-game characters, who guided guests through the space to find clues, solve puzzles, encounter props related to the game, and even dig their hands in real pies and crawl through a fake fireplace.

Guests traveled from room to room looking for clues that could open the mansion's ballroom and discover "What's Grandma hiding," the game's tagline. Experiences included a study, an escape room-style space where teams had to open a safe to find their next clue. Guests even chatted on cellphones with actors portraying characters in the game.

"What's so great about the Merge Mansion universe is the lore; there are so many YouTube videos of people with their own theories about what's happening within the game," said Jack Morton Worldwide's Kali Heitholt, who helped produce the experience. "We knew this needed to be something immersive, inclusive, and interactive." See more: How Pedro Pascal—and Some Clever Uses of AI—Brought Guests Inside the Real-Life Merge Mansion

During Comic-Con International in 2023, to celebrate its new series Anne Rice’s Interview With the Vampire ​and Anne Rice’s Mayfair Witches, AMC Network hosted a fan experience and activation in San Diego's Hilton Gaslamp Terrace. The area was transformed into “The Street of Immortality,” a New Orleans-inspired immersive experience set in the early 1900s. The activation was created in partnership with 3CS and Campfire.

The street featured several photo and video opportunities throughout the space, including iconic locations from Interview With the Vampire such as Hotel Iberville and Nawlins Records. Actors depicted various townspeople.

Attendees could tour the street, collect exclusive souvenirs and premiums, and enjoy “The Elixir of Immortality,” a limited-edition mocktail presented by POM Wonderful. The experience was free and open to the public.

Guests at Center Theatre Group’s “Stories Unite Us” gala experienced surprise-and-delight moments meant to amplify the magic of the theater at every turn, fully immersing them in the cause they were there to support. Held in Los Angeles in April 2022, the event kicked off with an outdoor cocktail reception where guests eventually heard a stage manager calling them to the stage. They walked through the stage door entrance, which brought them past real props, and onto the stage where tables were minimally dressed.

Once guests were seated, actress Phylicia Rashad stood up to talk about the magic of theater—and the room began transforming into a vibrant dining hall, with new lighting, staffers delivering centerpieces, a painted backdrop, and chandeliers lowered from the ceiling. “She started asking the stage manager for some sound and some lights and some prop pieces, and as soon as she asked for these things, our stage manager started calling for them over the loudspeaker,” said Lee Doud, the head of events at JJLA, which produced the gala.

Like any good theatrical experience, though, the set changes didn’t stop there. During dinner, up-and-coming playwrights stood and read pieces of their new work, with their narration sparking more changes to the lights, sound, and scenery. The final transformation of the space took place toward the end of the evening, when another new set was revealed and Tony- and Grammy-winning Broadway star Jennifer Holliday appeared to perform a surprise 25-minute set. And to close out the night, the curtain lifted so guests could take in the view of the entire theater—while a feather drop created one final wow-worthy moment. See more: Why This Fundraising Gala Was Designed After Guests Were Already Seated

A fun, actor-driven stunt came from Peacock at this year's edition of SXSW, to launch the campaign for its new original series Mrs. Davis. “To build buzz for our premiere event on March 14, we unveiled posters around the city, asking festivalgoers if they’d seen Simone, the nun played by Betty Gilpin in the series,” explained Jo Fox, the senior vice president of consumer and content marketing at Peacock. To prompt social media impressions, SXSW attendees who saw a nun were encouraged to post with the tags @Peacock and #MrsDavisGiveaway for a chance to "get their wings” and win prizes.

“We then unleashed nuns in blue habits throughout Austin,” Fox added. Throughout the festival, spectators could find the nuns “riding a mechanical bull, singing at a piano bar, and biking down the street, encouraging passersby to participate in getting their wings." (The task was a nod to Mrs. Davis’s plot.) See more: SXSW 2023: How Immersive Experiences Ruled at the Austin Fest

Oddly enough, that wasn't the first time SXSW attendees found nuns roaming the streets of Austin. During the 2019 festival, the Chattering Order of St. Beryl—an a cappella choir that sings about the apocalypse while decked out in nun costumes—took to the Texan city's streets to promote Prime Video's Good Omens. They hosted a karaoke party on their tour bus, crashed author Neil Gaiman's discussion about the book, and performed at one of the space’s parties. Creative production agency Tool coordinated the stunts. See more: SXSW 2019: Creative Brand Engagement Ideas from Amazon Prime, Uber Eats, Lululemon, and More