The most famous music hall in the world (as they say themselves) has had a rather lovely facelift to celebrate its 140-year anniversary. And it is shiny!

Come take a look…

For the last few years, the façade of the Folies Bergère has been looking rather grey and run down. Constructed in 1872, it’s now a listed historic monument, and definitely need sprucing up. Now, the building that once welcomed Joséphine Baker et inspiré Toulouse-Lautrec looks all sparkly and new!But a few subtle details have changed. Let’s compare things with this 2011 photo from Wikipedia.

The first thing that striked you is that the Art Déco frescoes (by sculptor Pico) are now golden, making the whole façade really ‘pop’.

Also, the name ‘Folies Bergère’ was written all over the place – above the façade, on a vertical banner on the right-hand side, and just below the central fresco. Now all those letters have gone, leaving just the classic art déco letters with the name of the theatre high on the front.

The sentence ‘the most famous music hall in the world” that had been added along the top of the canopy is now gone too, probably because a variety of different shows are now put on here. Also, just below the main fresco used to be grey, and has now become white to flow with the façade. The ensemble now looks more classic, fresher. The only cloud on the horizon is a new animated LED display advertising the current show – beyond ugly.

So let’s concentrate on the frescoes!  They really look splendid…So what can you see at the Folies Bergère at the moment? A popular, family selection including retro musicals (Salut Les Copains), Scooby Doo, Rufus Wainwright and Chilly Gonzales in concert, magic shows, tango… All the info is on the official site: www.foliesbergere.com.

To check out all our photos, click here.The Folies Bergère is at 32 rue Richer, 75009 Paris (here)

Official site: www.foliesbergere.com

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