In 1932, the Great Depression called for an even greater escape. To the assez cuckoo Jacques Haïk, this large-scale coping mechanism materialized in a cinema with nearly 3,000 seats (he originally wanted 2,000 more, but the builders talked him down). This was the Rex.

Today, protected since the ’80s in all of its art deco glory, The Rex remains the largest and oldest operating theater in all of Europe. Its “Grand Large” auditorium—three tiers of deep red plush rising in steep ascent to an azure ceiling that balloons high above—provide a picture-perfect backdrop to even the most devastating of performances.