Like the perfect pas de deux, ballet and opera have been in sync in Paris since 1669, when the Sun King Louis XIV — who fancied himself as a gifted dancer as much as a benevolent patron of the arts — founded the Académie d’Opéra. Ballet was originally performed as an entr’acte during an operatic […]
Literary Paris
La Traviata’s Paris
Arguably the most famous of all operas, La Traviata, which is currently playing at the Palais Garnier, has been one of the most enduringly popular pieces performed by the Opéra de Paris since the 1850s. Which is not surprising when you learn that, despite its Italian name, La Traviata is at heart a very Parisian […]
Five Inspirational (Honorary) Parisiennes
Maybe this is just a case of wishful thinking, but you don’t need to have a Parisian address to be a Parisienne. Parisian can be as much a state of mind, and style of dress, as it is a status of residence. It’s partly because the concept is so demystified these days. Ever since the […]