Things to do in Paris

Exhibitions

Le Barbier de Séville settles in Paris

The Opéra Bastille hosts Gioachino Rossini’s most famous opera, The Barber of Seville (Il Barbiere di Siviglia / Le Barbier de Séville), created in 1816.

Considered as the masterpiece of the Italian comic opera, it is played in two acts, on a libretto of Cesare Sterbini according to the comedy of Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais. He stages the count Almaviva, played here by Lawrence Brownlee, who falls madly in love with Rosine, interpreted by Pretty Yende, betrothed to an old doctor, Bartholo. The future spouses go to Seville where the count follows them and where he find again his former valet Figaro, who became barber in the doctor’s house. While Bartholo makes sure that no one approaches his fiancée, the count and his accomplice will use a stratagem to accost the young woman. These ruses will work as the count will marry his ladylove. Performed in Italian language by the Orchestra and the Choir of the Opéra National de Paris, this work has been staged by Damiano Michieletto, and the musical direction has been entrusted to Giacomo Sagripanti.

 


“The Barber of Seville” (“Le Barbier de Séville”), from February 2nd to March 4th 2016.
Rates: from 5 to 180 euros the seat (according to the category).

Paris Expo – Hall 3
Opéra Bastille
Place de la Bastille
75012 Paris
Metro: Bastille (lines 1, 5 and 8) or Gare de Lyon (lines 1, 14, RER A and D).
www.operadeparis.fr 

Fireworks Festival: the new musical trends

Organised in four major places of the Parisian nights, the Trianon, the Badaboum, the Point Ephémère and the Trabendo, the Fireworks Festival (Festival Fireworks) gives pride of place to the new international talents of the electro-pop, rock and indie scene.

This fifth edition, offered from February 24th to 29th 2016, invites Parisians and tourists to listen and discover the new musical trends. In order to do this, bands or artists as LA PRIEST, Beach Baby, Oh Wonder, Frances, C Duncan, Baio or even Oneohtrix Point Never have been invited. Whether to discover new musical genres, or to dance until early morning, this musical event already promises to be inevitable this winter! It is organised further to the collaboration of A Nous Paris free newspaper and Super artistic agency.

 

A Nous Paris Fireworks Festival (in French), from February 24th to 29th 2016.
LA PRIEST party at the Badaboum: Wednesday February 24th 2016 at 7:30pm.
Rates: 19.80 euros.
festival-anousparis-fireworks.fr 

Badaboum (in French)
2 bis, rue des Taillandiers
75011 Paris
Tél. : +33 (0)1 48 06 50 70
Metro: Ledru-Rollin (line 8).
badaboum.paris 

Gérard Fromanger on display at Pompidou

Since last February 17th, and until May 16th 2016, the Centre Pompidou hosts one of the most famous French painters: Gérard Fromanger.

Born in 1939, this protest artist sees his name associated to historic events over his life, modelled on May 1968. He is also a faithful friend of Jacques Prévert. And it doesn’t end there; his name is also linked to the texts of philosophers Gilles Deleuze, Félix Guattari and Michel Foucault, as well as a short film produced with director Jean-Luc Godard. For this retrospective, the museum dwells on about a fifty works, made between 1964 and 2015, which shows the painter’s style: the narrative figuration. We notably discover this particular atmosphere in which the artist created his works, until gain a large recognition during the 1970s.

 



“Gérard Fromanger” exhibition, from February 17th to May 16th 2016.
Open daily, except on Tuesday, from 11am to 9pm.
Nocturnal on Thursday until 11pm.
Closed on May 1st 2016.
Full rate: 14 euros / Concession: 11 euros.

Centre Pompidou
19, rue Beaubourg
75004 Paris
Tél. : +33 (0) 1 44 78 12 33
Metro: Rambuteau (line 11).
www.centrepompidou.fr  

Crédit photo : Gérard Fromanger – Centre Pompidou – Gérard Fromanger - ©SDP

Tony Hage’s snapshot portraits

Until March 27th 2016, La Maison Européenne de la Photographie hosts 25 shots of the famous Tony Hage.

This Franco-Lebanese photographer, born in Beirut in 1961, comes to Paris at the age of 17 after cinema studies. He begins as an assistant director and also takes photography courses. It is from the 1980s that he carries out his first reports in Egypt and in Jordan, in diverse cinema festivals. It is by the way at this time that he starts to immortalise the greatest personalities of the moment. Since, the artist is famous for his snapshot pictures of stars of fashion or movie world, modelled on Catherine Deneuve, Clint Eastwood or Marcello Mastroianni. He actually covered the Parisian Fashion Week which enabled him to gain acceptance in this world, but also in the press. His works has indeed been published as in The Times, Marianne, Voici as L’Express.

 



“Tony Hage – snapshots” (“Tony Hage- pris sur le vif”) (in French) exhibition from February 3rd to March 27th 2016.
Open Wednesday-Sunday, from 11am to 7:45pm.
Closed on Monday, Tuesday and bank holidays.
Full rate: 8 euros / Concession: 4.50 euros.
www.tonyhage.net 

La Maison Européenne de la Photographie
5/7, rue de Fourcy
75004 Paris
Tel. : +33 (0)1 44 78 75 00
Metro: Saint-Paul (line 1).
www.mep-fr.org  

Crédit photo : Tony Hage - Maison Européenne Photographie - Paris - Tony Hage, Catherine Deneuve and Yves Saint Laurent, 1983. - ©Tony Hage

Best places

The best train station restaurants in Paris

Before taking your train and left the capital, think about taking a gastronomic break in one of the best train station restaurants of Paris. Whether nestled inside these edifices, or located on the outskirts of it, they invite us with to discover the French culinary specialities with brio.

 

Crédit photo :Best train station restaurants – Paris - Le Train Bleu © Benjamin Monnerot-Dumaine

Lazare

It is on the parvis of the gare Saint-Lazare, which links Paris to Normandy, that Chef Eric Frechon, from the region, hosts his guests in Lazare.

This brasserie brings traditional French dishes up to date, modelled on the stew with marrow, blanquette de veau or pike quenelles. We appreciate the warm setting, dressed with wood and copper, with a central bar made by interior designer Karine Lewkowicz. On Sunday, Lazare revisits the brunch in the “Grand Mothers’ Lunches” version, as a nod to the dishes which have marked our childhood during Sunday meals.

Open daily from 7:30am to 12am.
“Grand Mother’s Lunches” menu: 39 euros.

Lazare (in French)
Parvis de la Gare Saint-Lazare
Rue Intérieure
75008 Paris
Tél. : +33 (0)1 44 90 80 80
Metro: Saint-Lazare (lines 3, 12, 13 and 14).
lazare-paris.fr

Le Train Bleu

Entirely renovated in 2014, this emblematic restaurant nestled at the heart of the gare de Lyon since 1901, worth going out of your way to see for its majestic decoration as much as the spectacle which is played in the room.

Listed at the heritage of the Historic Buildings (Patrimoine des Monuments Historiques), Le Train Bleu is only gildings, stuccos, paintings and others majestic frescos. He was visited by Jean Cocteau, Brigitte Bardot, Jean Gabin and many others. Among the house specialities, we can quote the tartare which is directly prepared at your table, the leg of lamb which is carved on a trolley in front of the guests, and of course, the mythical rum baba.

Open every day all year, from 11:30am to 2:45pm, and from 7pm to 10:45pm.
Menu: between 49 to 105 euros.

Le Train Bleu
Gare de Lyon
75012 Paris
Tél. : +33 (0)1 43 43 09 06
Metro: Gare de Lyon (lines 1, 14, RER A and D).
www.le-train-bleu.com

Terminus Nord

Located at the gare du Nord, this historic Parisian brasserie is renowned for its decoration combining the Art deco with the Art Nouveau, since 1925.

Copper, mahogany, mirrors, frescos are so many elements which take part in the magic of the place. Numerous artists have visited this location, as Alain Bashung, Jacques Higelin and Bernard Lavilliers. On the kitchen side, Chef Jean-Philippe Bourgeuil enhances the French gastronomic specialities, as the sole meunière, the Chateaubriand beef fillet, or the crepes Suzette with Grand Marnier. The Terminus Nord also offers platters of seafood and oysters, to get away over a meal in Paris.

Open Tuesday-Sunday from 7:30am to 12am and from 8am to 11pm on Sunday and Monday.
Menu: from 29 euros.

Terminus Nord
23, rue de Dunkerque
75010 Paris
Tél. : +33 (0)1 42 85 05 15
Métro: Gare du Nord (lines 4 and 5).
www.terminusnord.com

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