Paris Opera and Concert Halls

When you travel to Paris, you will be astonished by its rich architectural and historic heritage and some 15,000 seats in its various Paris opera and concert halls. The City of France glitters with exciting things to do and see.

Paris Opera and Concert Halls:

Since 1994, the Palais Garnier and Opéra Bastille have been brought together under the banner of the Opéra National de Paris.

Palais Garnier
A model for a great many auditoriums all over the world, it was constructed in the time of Napoleon III as part of the major development scheme carried out by Haussmann; the Opéra was put out to competition and Charles Garnier submitted the winning design. The construction work was to last from 1860 to 1875.
Since 1994, major refurbishment work has been undertaken to restore the sumptuousness of the Palais, very typical of the Second Empire style. The Groupe de la Danse de Carpeaux (Young Carp Dance Group), the marble Grand Staircase, the red and gold auditorium with ceiling by Chagall and a crystal chandelier weighing 8 tonnes are all designed for performance and illusion. In Box 5, you might even perhaps encounter the famous phantom …
Backstage, the Palais Garnier is home to some 70 stage technicians and Ballet de l’Opéra company, one of the most famous in the world.

1 Place del’Opera  75002  Paris
Tel: 01 44 73 13 00
 

Opéra Bastille
The work of Carlos Ott whose construction was one of François Mitterrand’s major building projects, it was officially opened on 13 July 1989, at the time of the commemorative celebrations of the bicentenary of the French Revolution. This large, modern, 2,703 seat theatre has all the latest equipment technology can offer and is considered to be the best-equipped among Paris opera and concert halls.

Opera Bastille, Place de la Bastille  75012  Paris
Tel: 08 36 69 78 68

THEATRE DES CHAMPS ELYSEES

Driven through by Gabriel Astruc, this art nouveau theatre built in 1913 by Les Frères Perret [the Perret brothers] with the collaboration of the sculptor Antoine Bourdelle and the painter Maurice Denis, was listed as an historic monument in 1953. The scandal of the first performance of the Rite of Spring by the Russian ballet should not consign the great figures who followed one another on to this prestigious stage to oblivion: from Debussy, Saint-Saëns to Furtwängler, Boulez and Gergiev, from Nelly Melba, Callas, Elizabeth Schwarzkopf to Cecilia Bartoli…

15 avenue Montaigne  75008  Paris
Tel: 01 49 52 50 00

THEATRE DU CHÂTELET

First opened in 1862, with its 2,500 seats it was then the largest auditorium among Paris opera and concert halls. The Théâtre du Châtelet has been an eclectic venue since the very beginning, for it has been host to Plays, Extravaganzas, Operetta (Luis Mariano, Tino Rosi), Variety shows, Films (Méliès) and Dance (Pavlova, Nijinski, Diaghilev). Since Edouard Colonne who staged first performances of French works (Bizet, Massenet, Ravel), the theatre has played a major role in the musical life of Paris. Tchaikovsky, Debussy, Grieg, Mahler and Richard Strauss have come to conduct their works. If you travel to Paris, you will see that in our day, by inviting the greatest conductors and bringing theatre directors in to the Opéra, the Théâtre du Châtelet has managed to retain its international standing.

OPERA COMIQUE

The first building dates from 1783. After two fires in 1838 and 1887, the present auditorium was first opened in 1898. Here the notes of Mignon, Carmen, Pelléas, Louise and Lakmé still resonate. Even though the programme today puts undue emphasis on music-hall, you can still listen to a few operas and recitals here.

SALLE GAVEAU

This 1,020 seat showcase for chamber music and recitals almost became a carpark in 1963. Since listed as an historic monument, it has just been completely renovated and restored to its original form.

SALLE PLEYEL

Originally intended for testing and appraising the company’s pianos, there were several Salles Pleyel. The present building was officially opened in 1927 with 3 concert halls, studios, exhibition rooms, offices, staff accommodation, etc. If you intend to travel there in coming years, you should know that, currently being refurbished, the major orchestras should be back again in 2005.

CITE DE LA MUSIQUE

Strongly advocated by Pierre Boulez, this was one of President Mitterrand’s first development projects. The Cité de la Musique, the work of Christian de Portzamparc, was officially opened in 1995. Its eclectic programme combines world music and classical.

Other Paris Opera and Concert Halls

Le marché foire de l’Odeon
Concert
3 rue du Canivet 75006 Paris
Tel: 01 43 29 93 02

Olympia
Concert
28 Bd des Capucines 75009 Paris
Tel: 01-55-27-10-00

Bataclan (Le)
Concert
50 boulevard Voltaire 75011 Paris
Tel: 01 43 14 35 35

New Morning
Concert
7 rue des Petites Ecuries 75010 Paris
Tel: 01 45 23 51 41

la Grande Halle de la Villette
Concert
211 av Jean Jaurès 75019 Paris
Tel: 01 40 03 75 00

Le Zenith
Concert
Porte de Pantin 75019
Tel: 01 42 08 60 00

Elysee Montmartre
Concert
72 boulevard Rochecouart 75018 Paris
Tel: 01 42 52 76 84

La Cigale
Concert
120 bd Rochechouart 75018 Paris
Tel: 01 49 25 81 75