New York (AFP)

When Adam Weiss presented his place in a theater in the famous Broadway district of New York, what was his surprise to discover that he had in exchange to separate from his phone.

"It's a bit like I have a part of me less," said the 39-year-old who was asked to slip his laptop in a closed pocket before entering the room.

But once the show starts, his anxieties dissipate and he releases the digital pressure.

"I actually did not even think," he told AFP.

This experience is becoming a trend in concerts or other theatrical performances.

Comedian Dave Chappelle or pop icon Madonna have adopted the "Yondr" system, named after the magnetic closure case that greets viewers' phones during a show. No worries, it's still possible to sneak out of the room and use your mobile in dedicated areas.

The goal is to reduce the distractions of artists and viewers, to engage the audience and to prevent web leakage.

In New York, Andrew Bancroft was on stage that night, in "Freestyle Love Supreme", an improvisational show. The ephemeral disappearance of phones is blessed bread, according to this comedian: fewer flashes equals a more attentive audience and ultimately creates a better show.

"There's that feeling these days - is there anything better I'm missing?" Says Bancroft about smartphone addiction.

"You are neither here nor there, you can not be completely in one place," he regrets.

- "Too many sensory signals" -

Behind this project to confine mobile phones, there is Graham Dugoni, 33 years old.

When he tried to sell his idea in San Francisco, the temple of technology, the young man encountered resistance. The concept is not "fundamentally popular with many technology companies," he says.

But he did not give up, believing that such a startup - finally created in 2014 - was essential to help "to switch into the digital age in a way that does not alter the meaning of people's lives."

"It's very important that the artist has a safe place to play, that fans can appreciate being caught by something," he says.

Today, Mr. Dugoni has made a philosophy of life and gave up the smartphone to return to the old flip phone because it was simply exposed to "too many sensory signals".

- "Real addiction" -

The New York Philharmonic Orchestra tests the Yondr program and a hearing aid at the Brooklyn Museum also requires locking up the phones.

Beyond the shows, Mr. Dugoni assures that Yondr began to seduce in schools to help students focus and in weddings, where couples ban cell phones to encourage their guests to "just be there and not do not take out their phone suddenly every two seconds. "

"What we hear most is that it creates a different energy in the room," he says.

Meredith Weiss, who attended the show "Freestyle Love Supreme" with her husband Adam, saw in this telephone break a welcome respite.

Her only concern was a call from the babysitter: "We have children at home," she says, "and I did not have time to tell her that we were not going to have our phones. "

Actor or spectator, Andrew Bancroft is convinced by the concept.

"From time to time people will say that their phone has missed them - (...) it also proves that we have a real addiction in our society," he says.

Mr. Bancroft laughs at the need for many people to "prove that (they) were there, take a picture of Miranda," he says in reference to Lin-Manuel Miranda, co-creator of his show and who is also the author of the musical "Hamilton".

"I'm guilty of it too," says Bancroft. "I say cool, I'll publish it later, and I usually do not even do it."

"So why did I lose 15 seconds of this beautiful moment to take a video that I will never watch?"

© 2019 AFP