Nouveau-Théâtre (1891–1918 ) Théâtre Réjane (1906–1918) Théâtre Moderne Petit Théâtre de Paris | |
 | |
 Interactive map of Théâtre de Paris | |
| Address | 15 rue Blanche Paris France |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 48°52′43″N02°19′53″E / 48.87861°N 2.33139°E /48.87861; 2.33139 |
| Type | theatre |
| Capacity | 1,100 (plus 300) |
| Opened | 1891 |
| Website | |
| www | |
TheThéâtre de Paris (French pronunciation:[teɑtʁdəpaʁi]) is a theatre located at 15, rue Blanche in the9th arrondissement of Paris. It includes a second smaller venue, thePetit Théâtre de Paris.
The first theatre on the site was built by theDuke of Richelieu in 1730. Baron Ogny bought it in 1779 and renamed itFolie-Richelieu. Then during theFirst Empire it was directed by Fortunée Hamelin, a celebrated member of theMerveilleuses ("marvelous women") of theDirectoire era.
_-_P1685_-_Mus%25C3%25A9e_Carnavalet.jpg)
In 1811, the Folie-Richelieu was transformed into a park, then demolished completely in 1851 in the redevelopment underBaron Haussmann. It became the site of the church ofSainte-Trinité de Paris with part of the site becoming aroller skating rink. In 1880, using plans by the architects Aimé Sauffroy and Ferdinand Grémailly, part of the rink became the Palace Théâtre and, after a further restoration in 1891 byÉdouard Niermans, theCasino de Paris. After that, the rest of the rink, near the present rue Blanche, was demolished to make way for theNouveau-Théâtre.
.jpg)
The first director of the Nouveau-Théâtre, wasAurélien Lugné-Poe, who, from 1888 to 1890, had been an actor in theThéâtre Libre company founded byAndré Antoine. After fulfilling four months of military service in early 1891, Lugné-Poe joinedPaul Fort's eclectic Théâtre d'Art, which, from 1890 to 1892, presented poetry recitations, dramatic work by Marlowe, Shelley, and Hugo, as well as new plays byRachilde,Paul Verlaine, and especiallyMaurice Maeterlinck (The Intruder,The Blind). When Fort left the enterprise at the start of 1893, Lugné-Poe assumed control, renamed it theThéâtre de l'Œuvre, and pursued aggressively Symbolist programming to rival Antoine's more Naturalistic offerings. Although Antoine had been the first to introduce Paris audiences to the modern drama ofHenrik Ibsen (Ghosts, 1890;The Wild Duck, 1891), and Fort had producedThe Lady from the Sea in 1892, starring Lugné-Poe as Wangel, it was Lugné-Poe who would make Ibsen his specialty in Paris theatre, premiering (and often starring in) nine Ibsen plays between 1893 and 1897.
Like Paul Fort before him, Lugné-Poe never had a permanent theatre to serve as his company's home stage for the entire run of its initial art-theatre experiment. The Théâtre de l'Œuvre debuted with Maeterlinck'sPelléas et Mélisande for a single matinée performance at theThéâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens in May 1893, but the six engagements in his next season occurred at the distantThéâtre des Bouffes du Nord, where he premiered Ibsen'sRosmersholm,An Enemy of the People, andThe Master Builder, Gerhart Hauptmann'sLonely Lives, and Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson'sBeyond Human Power, among others. For the May 1894 production ofHenri Bataille andRobert d'Humières'Sleeping Beauty, however, he secured Nouveau-Théâtre's space for the first time. Though he concluded the season withAugust Strindberg'sCreditors at the newly built Comédie-Parisienne (later known asLouis Jouvet'sThéâtre de l'Athénée), he quickly assumed the directorship of Nouveau-Théâtre for most of the 1894-95 season. There he premiered Maeterlinck's adaptation ofJohn Ford's'Tis Pity She's a Whore (Annabella), Beaubourg'sThe Mute Voice, Strindberg'sThe Father,Śūdraka'sThe Little Clay Cart, and Maeterlinck'sInterieur, among others. While his May 1895 productions (including Ibsen'sLittle Eyolf) were staged at the Théâtre des Menus-Plaisirs, he returned to Nouveau-Théâtre to conclude the season with Ibsen'sBrand.
The 1895-96 season found residence at two locations. Lugné-Poe staged the first half of the season back at the Comédie-Parisienne, with a line-up that includedThomas Otway'sVenice Preserved,Kālidāsa'sThe Ring of Shakuntalā, andOscar Wilde'sSalome.The second half, however, starting in March 1896, began over two-years' residency for the Théâtre de l'Œuvre at Nouveau-Théâtre. Most notably, they premiered Ibsen'sPillars of Society (22-23 June 1896) andPeer Gynt (11-12 November 1896);Alfred Jarry'sUbu Roi (9-10 December 1896); Bjørnson's sequel toBeyond Human Power (25-26 January 1897); Hauptmann's fairy dramaThe Sunken Bell (4-5 March 1897); Bataille'sYour Blood (7-8 May 1897); Ibsen'sLove's Comedy (22-23 June 1897) andJohn Gabriel Borkman (8-9 November 1897);Nikolai Gogol'sThe Inspector General (7-8 January 1898); andRomain Rolland'sAert (2-3 May 1898) andThe Wolves (18 May 1898). For their last season, the Théâtre de l'Œuvre gave two undistinguished premieres—Paul Sonniès'Fausta (15-16 May 1899) and Lucien Mayrargue'sThe Yoke (5-6 June 1899)—preferring to hold the much anticipated revival ofAn Enemy of the People at the grander Théâtre de la Renaissance in February. Lugné-Poe's last productions for the company were done at the very theatre where the Théâtre de l'Œuvre had begun in 1893 withPelléas et Mélisande: the Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens. Lugné-Poe had successfully established the Nouveau-Théâtre as the site for daring, challenging, and at times outrageous modern drama.
In 1906, the actressGabrielle Réjane bought the theater, renovated it and gave it a new name, theThéâtre Réjane. She produced among other works the French premiere of Maeterlinck'sL'oiseau bleu in 1911 and successfully played her signature role ofMadame Sans-Gêne byVictorien Sardou at the theatre.
The producer Léon Volterra bought the hall in 1918, and on 12 August 1919, he inaugurated theThéâtre de Paris, Réjane having stipulated in the sales contract that the theater could not retain her name. Volterra ran the theatre until 1948, when it was taken over by Marcel Karsenty and the comedianPierre Dux. The actress and directorElvira Popescu took over in 1955 along with Hubert de Mallet, managing it for ten years, before she left to theThéâtre Marigny.
Under Alain de Leseleuc (1965–1975) and Robert Hossein (1975–1990) the theatre specialized in musical works, particularlyOffenbachoperettas andopéras-bouffes, such asLa Périchole directed by Maurice Lehmann,La belle Hélène directed byJérôme Savary, andLe pont des soupirs directed byJean-Michel Ribes. It also produced musicals likeStarmania andCats.
Since January 2002, Stéphane Hillel has been artistic director of both theatres.
Elvira Popescu created a second venue with 300 seats, converted from costume workshops, which she first called theThéâtre Moderne before renaming it thePetit Théâtre de Paris. Today this second performance space bears the name "Salle Réjane."
(Notable premieres at Nouveau-Théâtre, presented by Lugné-Poe's Théâtre de l'Œuvre)
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Geographic | |
| Other | |
