Théâtre de l'Athénée () or Salle de l'Athénée () was the name of a theatre in the basement of a building built in 1865 by the banker Bischoffsheim at 17 rue Scribe in the

9th arrondissement of Paris The 9th arrondissement of Paris (''IXe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, it is referred to as (; "ninth"). The arrondissement, called Opéra, is located on the right bank of th ...

(near the new, but at the time unfinished opera house, now known as the

Palais Garnier The (, Garnier Palace), also known as (, Garnier Opera), is a historic 1,979-seatBeauvert 1996, p. 102. opera house at the Place de l'Opéra in the 9th arrondissement of Paris, France. It was built for the Paris Opera from 1861 to 1875 at the ...

). The Athénée was initially small, with a capacity of 760 spectators, but was enlarged to 900 places by the addition of a top gallery in 1867. The interior was decorated by Charles Cambon. The venue was used by a variety of companies, including the Théâtre des Fantaisies-Parisiennes (1869), the

Théâtre Lyrique The Théâtre Lyrique () was one of four opera companies performing in Paris during the middle of the 19th century (the other three being the Paris Opera, Opéra, the Opéra-Comique, and the Théâtre-Italien (1801–1878), Théâtre-Italien). ...

(1871–1872), the Théâtre Scribe (1874–1875), and the Athénée-Comique (1876–1883). It closed permanently in 1883.Wild 1989, pp. 45–46.

History

The Athénée was inaugurated on 21 November 1866 with a series of concerts conducted by

Jules Pasdeloup Jules Étienne Pasdeloup (; 15 September 1819 – 13 August 1887) was a French conductor. Life Pasdeloup was born in Paris. His father was an assistant conductor at the Opéra Comique; he was educated in music at the Conservatoire de Paris, leav ...

. Concerts were generally given on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and conferences on Tuesday, Thursday, or Saturday. The concerts were not financially successful, and Bischoffsheim looked for a new tenant. The final concert was given on 31 May 1867. The venue was next used by a

musical theatre Musical theatre is a form of theatre, theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, ...

company under the name Théâtre de l'Athénée from 13 December 1867 to 13 January 1869. The directors were

William Busnach William Bertrand Busnach (7 March 1832, Paris – 20 January 1907, Paris) was a French dramatist. Biography Busnach was a nephew of the composer Fromental Halévy. His father was associated with David Ben Joseph Coen Bakri, to whom France was ...

and Léon Sari. '' Opéras-bouffes'', '' opérettes'', and '' vaudevilles'' were presented, by composers such as

Georges Bizet Georges Bizet (; 25 October 18383 June 1875) was a French composer of the Romantic music, Romantic era. Best known for his operas in a career cut short by his early death, Bizet achieved few successes before his final work, ''Carmen'', w ...

Léo Delibes Clément Philibert Léo Delibes (; 21 February 1836 – 16 January 1891) was a French Romantic music, Romantic composer, best known for his ballets and French opera, operas. His works include the ballets ''Coppélia'' (1870) and ''Sylvia (b ...

, and

Charles Lecocq Alexandre Charles Lecocq (; 3 June 183224 October 1918) was a French composer, known for his opérettes and opéra comique, opéras comiques. He became the most prominent successor to Jacques Offenbach in this sphere, and enjoyed considerable su ...

. The '' chef d'orchestre'' was Bernardin. On 11 February 1869 Louis Martinet transferred his Théâtre des Fantaisies-Parisiennes, formerly in a 350-seat theatre at 26

Boulevard des Italiens The Boulevard des Italiens () is a boulevard in Paris. It is one of the 'Grands Boulevards' in Paris, a chain of boulevards built through the former course of the Wall of Charles V and the Louis XIII Wall, which were destroyed by the orders of ...

, to the larger Athénée. Their conductor, Charles Constantin, also came with them. On 1 April 1869, the company took the theatre's name and began performing as the Théâtre de l'Athénée. On 16 June 1870, when Martinet was appointed head of the Théâtre-Lyrique (on the Place du Châtelet), he decided to close the Athénée. The

Franco-Prussian War The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the War of 1870, was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. Lasting from 19 July 1870 to 28 Janua ...

and

Siege of Paris (1870–71) Siege of Paris may refer to: *Siege of Paris (845), the Viking siege by Reginherus, possibly Ragnar Lodbrok * Siege of Paris (885–886), the Viking siege by Rollo * Siege of Paris (978), by Otto II of Germany, and Holy Roman Emperor * Siege of Pari ...

prevented any of Martinet's productions from being staged at the Théâtre-Lyrique on the Place du Châtelet, and when that theatre was destroyed by fire during the events of the subsequent

Paris Commune The Paris Commune (, ) was a French revolutionary government that seized power in Paris on 18 March 1871 and controlled parts of the city until 28 May 1871. During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, the French National Guard (France), Nation ...

, he decided to move the company to the Athénée, where they opened on 11 September 1871 under the name Théâtre-Lyrique, with Constantin as the conductor. In March 1872, the name was changed to Théâtre-Lyrique-National. The company's last performance at the Athénée was on 31 May 1872, and Martinet's enterprise declared bankruptcy on 6 June. On 10 October 1872 Martinet's former secretary, Jules Ruelles, revived performances at the theatre under the name Théâtre de l'Athénée (although some posters give the name as Théâtre Lyrique). Operas and '' opéras-comiques'' were performed, and the conductor was again Constantin. This company's final performance was on 3 December 1873. The theatre reopened on 5 September 1874 as the Théâtre Scribe, under the direction of Noël Martin, who presented plays until 6 February 1875, when ''Un accroc dans l'dos'' (an ''opérette'') and ''La belle Lina'' (an ''opérette-bouffe'' by Paul Avenel and Paul Mahalin with music by Charles Hubans) were performed. The company closed down that month after six performances. A more successful company known as the Athénée-Comique, under the direction of

Montrouge Montrouge () is a Communes of France, commune in the southern Parisian suburbs, located from the centre of Paris. It is one of the most densely populated municipalities in Europe. After a long period of decline, the population has increased agai ...

, performed at the theatre from 4 February 1876 until 31 May 1883. Light comedies, revues, vaudevilles, and ''opéras-comiques'' were given. The ''chef d'orchestre'' was

Louis Varney Louis Varney (; 30 May 1844, New Orleans, Louisiana – 20 August 1908, Cauterets, France) was a French composer. Biography Louis Varney was the son of Alphonse Varney, a French conductor at the Bouffes-Parisiens and at the Grand Théâtre d ...

, whose ''Il signor Pulcinella'' was presented there, beginning on 26 September 1876. The last performance in the theatre was on 31 May 1883, after which the top gallery and the balcony below it were converted into a restaurant, and the

orchestra pit An orchestra pit is an area in a theatre (usually located in a lowered area in front of the stage) in which musicians perform. The orchestra plays mostly out of sight in the pit, rather than on the stage as for a concert, when providing music fo ...

became a coal cellar.Chauveau 1999, p. 87.

Notes

Bibliography

* Chauveau, Philippe (1999). ''Les théâtres parisiens disparus, 1402–1986''. Paris: Éditions de l'Amandier. . * Lecomte, Louis-Henry (1912). ''Histoire des théâtres de Paris: Les Fantaisies-Parisiennes, l'Athénée Le Théâtre Scribe, l'Athénée-Comique (1865-1911)''. Paris: H. Daragon
Copy
at the Internet Archive. * Walsh, T. J. (1981). ''Second Empire Opera: The Théâtre Lyrique Paris 1851–1870''. New York: Riverrun Press. . * Wild, Nicole (

989 Year 989 ( CMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Emperor Basil II uses his contingent of 6,000 Varangians to help him defeat Bardas Phokas (the Younger), who suffe ...

. ''Dictionnaire des théâtres parisiens au XIXe siècle: les théâtres et la musique''. Paris: Aux Amateurs de livres. . (paperback)
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WorldCat WorldCat is a union catalog that itemizes the collections of tens of thousands of institutions (mostly libraries), in many countries, that are current or past members of the OCLC global cooperative. It is operated by OCLC, Inc. Many of the O ...

. {{Coord, 48.87262, 2.33076, scale:500_region:FR, display=title Former theatres in Paris Buildings and structures in the 9th arrondissement of Paris

History

See also

Notes

Bibliography