The Shed and Punchdrunk present the North American premiere of "Viola’s Room"

The Shed and Punchdrunk present the North American premiere of “Viola’s Room”

Peter Anderson
June 16, 2025

The Shed and Punchdrunk proudly announce the North American premiere of Viola’s Room, the critically acclaimed immersive experience conceived and directed by Punchdrunk founder Felix Barrett. Narrated by award-winning actor Helena Bonham Carter, Viola’s Room invites audience members into an intimate, audio-driven adventure. This production marks Punchdrunk’s highly anticipated return to New York City following their ground-breaking, long-running Sleep No More. The experience begins at The Shed (545 West 30th Street) and runs until 19 October.

Written by Booker Prize–shortlisted author Daisy Johnson, Viola’s Room reimagines Barry Pain’s 1901 gothic short story “The Moon-Slave” for a modern audience. The production, with its combination of visual art, storytelling, and audience interaction, delivers a once-in-a-lifetime experience. “Ever since we opened Sleep No More back in 2011, New York has been our second home, so I’m elated that Viola’s Room will have its international premiere at The Shed this year,” said Felix Barrett, Punchdrunk’s founder and artistic director.

“It’s the most intimate and distilled form of a Punchdrunk experience we’ve created: an invitation to step inside a teenage daydream and surrender to the unknown. In a non-stop world of screens and tech this is an invitation to succumb to a live, tactile and fully sensory journey. I’m so excited that New York audiences will soon be able to immerse themselves within the labyrinth of Viola’s Room.”

“Viola’s Room is Punchdrunk’s first new production in New York since their smash hit Sleep No More boldly changed what theater can be and how we interact with it,” said Alex Poots, The Shed’s artistic director. “Having collaborated with Felix Barrett for nearly two decades on several projects, it’s an honor to work with such a visionary talent again and to now co-produce and premiere Viola’s Room—a mesmerizing, wondrous experience—at The Shed.”

“The Shed was designed for the future of art making, embracing flexibility and scale to offer both intimate and monumental experiences with interdisciplinarity at its core,” said Meredith “Max” Hodges, The Shed’s CEO. “We’ve seen audiences crave the immersive and inventive, as with the art carnival Luna Luna, Tomás Saraceno’s aerial installation, and Ryuichi Sakamoto in Tin Drum’s mixed-reality concert Kagami. Punchdrunk’s Viola’s Room perfectly embodies this, offering an enchanting experience that blurs the lines between audience and art. It’s exactly the kind of production The Shed is built to deliver.”

Viola’s Room was originally produced in London by Punchdrunk at their Woolwich home and ran May until December 2024. Audience members walk barefoot through the maze-like installation in The Shed’s Level 4 Gallery, in groups of up to six people. Each audience member receives headphones to be guided by the enchanting voice of an unseen narrator, voiced by Helena Bonham Carter, on a surreal, 50- minute sensory journey. The official headphone partner of Viola’s Room is Bowers & Wilkins

For tickets and additional information about the production and memberships for presale access, visit www.theshed.org.