Among our city’s finest ambassadors for culture are Marifé Hernández and her husband Joel Bell.
“When I discover something wonderful, I want to share it, and I want all my friends to know about it, and I want everybody to go,” said Marifé to 50 of her closest friends who gathered at her home on Thursday June 8th to learn of her newest endeavor, The International Circle of the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées. “I discovered the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées when I was about eight or nine, because I was lucky enough to have a grandmother who took me to Paris every year and to this beautiful theater.”
With this, she introduced the theater’s director general, Michel Franck, who explained, “Ours is one of the most beautiful theaters in Paris. But what makes it special is intimacy; although it is relatively large, it always feels intimate, with all our seats no more than 30 meters from the stage. It is this atmosphere, a feeling of community, that makes us a family we hope you will join.”
The International Circle of the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées plans a five-day September trip to Paris that incudes the opening of the new season with the Orchestra and Choir of La Scala de Milan and the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, as well as private entertainments including a concert and cocktail hosted by Comte Patrice de Laage de Meux (patron of the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées) in his hôtel particulier, a dinner given by Veronique Bich in her Paris apartment, a tour of the Laurent-Perrier Domain and its cellars, Tours-sur-Marne, and a lunch at Chateau de Louvois.
Michel Franck went on to explain, “From our beginning, and through our history we are home to great art and artists, Stravinsky and Nijinsky, Josephine Baker (and celebrating her again next year), Maria Callas’ farewell concert, Bruno Walter, Rubenstein, Horowitz, Toscanini, Karajan, Ozawa, Boulez, Muti, William Christie, Jacques Brell and Elton John. Cecilia Bartoli will be with us again soon because she says this is her home, a home for artists. They find it rewarding to be part of us and we hope our American friends will feel the same. The one thing that we are not is on the Champs-Élysées, we are nearby on avenue Montaigne. But that, too, is part of our history.”
For more information on The International Circle of the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées kindly write: Julia Neugebauer at jneugebauer@theatrechampselysees.fr
