What’s On in Paris: Festival d’Automne

Expand your art horizon with the diverse international voyage of discovery that is the 43rd edition of Paris’s autumn festival. As soon as Parisians come back from their summer exodus, the cultural season kicks off with a complex constellation of events on an international scale.

For a period of four months, the city becomes a carrefour of theatre, dance, fine arts, and cinema. This is a nomadic festival, without a specific home, so each year artists are invited to alight like migratory birds, upon the rich cultural structures and networks of Paris, which eagerly welcome them.

From the Centre Pompidou to the Théâtre du Châtelet, Cité de la Musique, Jeu de Paume and the contemporary centre Le Cenquatre-Paris, around 40 of the city’s most prestigious venues participate in this major undertaking.

The festival sees a multidisciplinary line-up of artists and performers showcasing their creations, many of them experimental. Michel Guy, the festival’s founder, has held fast to three main principles: national borders must never become cultural limitations, creativity must be fed by exchange and confrontation, and that Paris can only succeed as an emitter of culture as long as it remains at the same time an open receptor and facilitator. In this spirit, the festival continues to seduce a wide  audience. With its demanding yet accessible programme, which constantly pushes the boundaries of contemporary fine and performing arts, it combines provocative emerging talent with established 20th century classics.

The 2014 edition promises an opulent helping of originality in all of its manifestations. The festival’s opening event is the Ballet de l’Opéra de Lyon’s interpretation of William Forsythe’s Limb’s Theorem, which is part of a ‘portrait’ of the celebrated American choreographer.

A sparkling festival programme also features Bertrand Bonello’s Résonances, which includes an audio-visual installation plus screenings of the classically-trained French director’s films, and a version of Verdi’s opera, Macbeth, by South African playwright Brett Bailey / Third World Bunfight. In addition, Croatian artist David Malkjkovic is to present a site-specific installation, In Low Resolution, at the Palais de Tokyo, reflecting upon the exhibition format as a narrative medium for public communication.

Festival d’Automne à Paris: September 4 – December 31, 2014. Various sites around Paris. Admission varies, check website for ticket prices. Free admission to selected events. Tel: +33 1 53 45 17 17

From France Today magazine