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Abraham de Amézaga
Viernes, 24 de enero 2025, 21:55
Napoleon III himself conceived the idea of creating a new theatre in the City of Light. This was prompted by an assassination attempt he survived in 1858, which nearly cost him his life while on his way to a Parisian theatre. The envisioned establishment was to be an imperial academy combining music and dance, and certainly a fortress in terms of security.
It is said that when the project was presented to Empress Eugenia de Montijo, his wife, she remarked that she could not discern the style that inspired the building's creator. To her surprise, Charles Garnier, the architect, replied that it was not any past style but a new one of the moment, "the Napoleon III style." Thus, it became a reference for Second Empire constructions, blending classical influences, particularly Baroque and Renaissance.
This majestic public work is one of the most beautiful dedicated to the arts worldwide. It took nearly fifteen years to erect, amidst a Paris undergoing urban transformation led by Baron Haussmann. The chosen site was at the centre of three prominent streets. Despite the marshy land, it received ministerial approval. Its total cost? 36 million gold francs (approximately 329 million euros today). Undoubtedly, Garnier's most significant construction, alongside the Monte Carlo Opera, built years later.
Inspired by late Italian Renaissance palaces, its interior is replete with sculpture and painting; an opulent decoration, highlighted by its impressive staircase. This led many to call Charles Garnier "the Veronese of architecture." Various theatres in the French capital and one in Marseille inspired the master when designing the grand hall and auditorium. Moreover, for the first time, the public spaces occupied a significantly larger area than the auditorium itself, unprecedented until then.
Inside, with its mysterious atmosphere, visitors are completely isolated from the outside world, in a place that is a spectacle in itself, as aptly noted. The ceiling is also a focal point due to its solemnity. The original work bears the signature of Eugène Lenepveu, inspired by The Triumph of Beauty; since 1964, it has been covered by another colourful work by Chagall, commissioned by then Minister of Culture, writer and intellectual André Malraux.
A place to see and be seen, a mirror of an era, it has also featured in films, series, musicals, and cartoons. Among the most notable are Funny Face (1957) by Stanley Donen, starring Audrey Hepburn and Fred Astaire, and the hilarious La Grande Vadrouille (The Big Jerk, in Spanish), with the ever-amusing Louis de Funès. It has also hosted significant fashion shows, such as the haute couture Chanel show last June, one of its great patrons.
In terms of numbers, each year, more than a million visitors from around the world discover this building, which spans over eleven thousand square metres, and more than three hundred thousand attend its various performances, annually filling its grand hall, which boasts over two thousand red velvet seats, a symbol of imperial power.
The 150th-anniversary celebrations of the Palais Garnier extend throughout 2025. Besides the gala on January 24, the day of its official inauguration a century and a half ago, there will be themed visits. In the autumn, exhibitions on the building's history and a selection of stage costumes from 1950 to the present day are planned. Twelve artists will reside for twelve months, creating twelve works; outside the theatre, names from the jewellery, footwear, and gastronomy worlds have joined the celebration, launching creations inspired by the palace. All coinciding with the bicentenary of Charles Garnier's birth, which will take place on November 6.
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