- Title: Curtain drops on Paris puppet theatre to make way for Olympic needs
- Date: 30th May 2024
- Summary: CHILDREN WATCHING SIGN FOR CHAMPS DE MARS PUPPET THEATRE METAL FENCES ON CHAMP DE MARS, EIFFEL TOWER IN BACKGROUND METAL FENCES ON CHAMPS DE MARS LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD PUPPET / CHAMP DE MARS PUPPET THEATRE DIRECTOR, JULIEN SOMMER, PERFORMING WITH PUPPET VARIOUS OF SOMMER PERFORMING WITH LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD AND WOLF PUPPETS (SOUNDBITE) (French) CHAMP DE MARS PUPPET THEATRE DIRECTOR, JULIEN SOMMER, SAYING: "This is my life, as I said. Finding out from one day to the next that months later, we'd have to pack our bags, say goodbye to 25 years of life -- well 35 years, since I started coming here when I was little -- to have that erased in two months for three weeks of sports, that's really unbelievable. It was quite sudden and harsh, so it was a bit hard at first."
- Embargoed: 13th June 2024 13:00
- Keywords: Champ de Mars Eiffel Tower France Guignol Olympic Games Paris 2024 puppet show
- Location: PARIS, FRANCE
- City: PARIS, FRANCE
- Country: France
- Topics: Europe,Olympics,Sport
- Reuters ID: LVA002668030052024RP1
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Blue and pink lights illuminated the stage as curtains rose at Paris’ Champs de Mars puppet theatre, with audience members clapping as they are welcomed by a Guignol marionette to a play to the tune of cheerful carnival music.
The puppet theatre, a fixture of the park since 1902, performed on Wednesday (May 29), likely its final show before it closes for the Olympic Games.
"This is my life,” the theatre’s director Julien Sommer told Reuters. “Finding out from one day to the next that months later, we'd have to pack our bags, goodbye to 25 years of life - well, 35 years, since I started coming here when I was little - erased in two months for three weeks of sports, that's really unbelievable.”
Close to the Eiffel Tower, the theatre offers a classic repertoire of fairy tales such as Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty, as well as new creations with a "troupe" of 400 puppets.
In January, Sommer said he was informed by the city government that it was terminating its contract with the theatre on the Champs de Mars, which will be closed to the public from June for Olympic preparations, and that it might be converted into a “technical zone” for the Games.
The move drew objections from theatre supporters, and a petition to keep the site open drew more than 13,000 signatures in one month.
The Paris city council finally reversed its decision to terminate the contract, opting instead to suspend activity at the venue from May 31 until around October. There is no set reopening date yet.
Sommer said that although he understands the security concerns surrounding the closure, the city could have thought of ways to integrate the theatre into the Olympics.
"It's a shame to deprive tourists of Parisian life, of everything that's part of the charm of Paris, and to make something neutral, ephemeral, something without a soul,” he said.
On Wednesday, puppets portraying characters of the popular fairytale “Little Red Riding Hood” pranced on stage gleefully in a 45-minute session. Dozens of children, as well as a handful of adults, laughed as Sommer, his hands manipulating puppets, joked about the four-month closure.
Audience members said they find it regrettable to see the theatre temporarily close its doors.
Backstage, Sommer tidied up the puppets on a shelf and the performances’ backdrops. Touching his Little Red Riding Hood marionette, he bade the puppets goodbye.
“We'll come back,” he said. “They're tough. Don't worry, we'll be fine."
(Production: Ardee Napolitano, Mathilde Cousin) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2024. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None