Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord

Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord
Théâtre Molière (1904-1914)
Théâtre des Carrefours (1945-1952)
Address 37 bis, boulevard de la Chapelle
Paris
France
Coordinates 48°53′02″N 2°21′32″E / 48.8840°N 2.3588°E / 48.8840; 2.3588
Capacity 503
Opened 1876
Website
www.bouffesdunord.com

The Bouffes du Nord is a theater at 37 bis, boulevard de la Chapelle in the 10th arrondissement of Paris located near the Gare du Nord. It has been listed since 1993 as a monument historique by the French Ministry of Culture.[1]

History

Founded in 1876, it had an erratic existence and seemed that it would never get off the ground. In its first decade it had no fewer than fifteen artistic directors, the most notorious being Olga Léaud who fled the theater after her production had failed, taking the contents of the theater safe with her.

The theater's fortunes were revived briefly in 1885 by the arrival of Abel Ballet as the director. In 1896, Abel Ballet left the direction of Bouffes North. The two actors Emmanuel Clot and G. Dublay succeeded him. In 1904, the theater, under the direction of its directors, was entirely restored, repainted, and equipped with electricity. The theatre was renamed the Théâtre Molière and authors such as Arthur Bernède and Gaston Leroux were assembled to write plays for the newly named theater. In August 1914 the Théâtre Molière, like other theatres, closed its doors. Until 1974, the theater was inhabited by a number of theater companies, none of which were able to afford the repairs and maintenance needed for it to conform with security regulations.

Peter Brook

The British director Peter Brook, together with the French producer Micheline Rozan, took over the theater in 1974 as the home for the theatre company they co-founded, the International Centre for Theatre Research.[2] Although the theatre was renovated, it was not redecorated. This gave the interior an unusual and memorable distressed look that may be seen in the opening scene of Jean-Jacques Beineix's 1981 film Diva, which was filmed there.[3]

In 2008, Brook announced that he would slowly hand the reins over to Olivier Mantei, the deputy head of the Paris opera company Opéra-Comique and head of the musical programming at the Bouffes du Nord, and Olivier Poubelle, a theatre entrepreneur specialising in modern music.

His farewell production was A Magic Flute.[4]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Ministry of Culture: Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord (in French)
  2. ↑ Todd, Andrew; Lecat, Jean-Guy (2003). The open circle : Peter Brook's theatre environments. London: Faber. ISBN 9780571214907.
  3. ↑ "Diva film locations". www.movie-locations.com. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
  4. ↑ http://www.theartsdesk.com/opera/magic-flute-cictth%C3%A9%C3%A2tre-des-bouffes-du-nord-barbican-theatre
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