The Phono-Cinéma-Théâtre, animated visions of famous artists, constitutes the very first spectacle of talking cinema in history, of which we have audible traces (recorded on wax cylinders) and visible ones (hand-colored films). This spectacle was created by actress and dancer Marguerite Vrignault, and was financed by the engineer and industrialist Paul Decauville (1846-1922), and presented during the summer of 1900 at the Universal Exposition in Paris.
One hundred twelve years later, after an exceptional screening on October 12, 2012, at the Giornate del cinema muto in Pordenone (Italy), the spectacle was also presented on November 30 at the Cinémathèque française (51 rue de Bercy) for a unique session. History records that the Phono-Cinéma-Théâtre preceded the advent of sound film by nearly thirty years as we know it today. The screening of the spectacle includes sequences of various kinds: theater, opera, operettas, cafe-concert, circus, ballet, all performed by top artists, including COQUELIN aîné (1841-1909) and Sarah BERNHARDT (1844-1923).