The Louvre Museum houses one of the largest collections of artworks and antiquities in the world. The museum is located inside the Louvre Palace, which was built in the 12th Century as a fortress by Philip II. After Louis XIV, he decided to move his court to Versailles, the palace was occupied by a variety of institutions related to the arts. The museum was first opened under the National Assembly in 1793. The establishment is divided into sections, including drawing, painting and sculpture, and houses antiquities from Egypt, Rome, Greece, and several other cultures. Visitors to the museum can explore its many wings and see some of the most famous works like the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo and Liberty Leading the People.
Millions of visitors come to see Musée d'Orsay's mammoth collection of French art every year. The building itself, called the Gare d'Orsay, was built as a railway station in 1900, is a striking Beaux-Arts edifice. At 138 meters long (453 feet) and 32 meters tall (105 feet), the opulent principal gallery of the ground floor is a reminder of the building's history. Among the masterpieces in this gallery are the Burial at Ornans by Gustave Courbet and the Gleaners by Jean-François Millet. Fans of impressionism should head directly up to the fifth floor, where works by the greatest masters of this genre can be found.
Indisputably one of the most opulent buildings, the Palace of Versailles is the epitome of French royalty. Louis XIV commissioned architects Louis Le Vau and Jules Hardouin to build the Château de Versailles in 1664, on the site of his father's small hunting lodge. It became one of the largest palaces in Europe, accommodating up to 20,000 courtiers at a time. The interiors are extravagant and the highlights include the Royal Apartments and the world renowned Hall of Mirrors. The Grand Trianon (1687) and the Petit Trianon (1762) are also in the park. In the year 1919, the Hall of Mirrors played a significant role in world politics for being the place where the Treaty of Versailles was signed. An outstanding exemplar of the French Baroque architecture to this day, this UNESCO World Heritage Site palace enthralls visitors with its opulence and legends.
La Gaîté Lyrique is situated where the former Théâtre de la Gaîté was and has combined the original theater's facade into its new existence. This contemporary music and digital arts center opened in 2010. La Gaîté Lyrique is a seven-storeyed building with the first five available to the public while the last two are private, including artisan shops. This huge space has three performance venues, various exhibition spaces, a resource center, video gaming area and artist rooms. Majority of these areas are adaptable and movable such as the dressing rooms and offices. You'll find concerts, lectures, films, and workshops at La Gaîté Lyrique.
Take a trip to the beautiful gardens of Tuileries, where the Orangerie Museum is located. The museum stocks a host of famous and fabulous artists such as Cezanne, Matisse, Picasso and Henri Rousseau. All the artwork in the museum was handed over by Jean Walter and Paul Guillaume, two art fanatics who have ensured that all these works are exhibited together. There is a surprise in the basement: the Oval Room, which houses some of Monet's Water-Lily paintings on permanent display. Another surprise awaiting you is the La Galerie Nationale du Jeu de Paume, which is a twin tower of the Orangerie.
Le Point-Virgule, a comedy theater in the Marais district, the historical quarter of the capital, features comics all year, and in particular during its renowned Humor Festival in late summer. One-man-shows, sketches, impressions, improvisation, musical shows, the program here is rich and varied, the setting, a pleasant and typical one. Every summer, a humorous festival is organized with more than 80 artists.
If Renaissance art is your cup of tea, then this gallery is the place to be in. An excellent selection of medieval and Renaissance antiques, which includes paintings and sculptures is on display here. There is also an exclusive collection of objects d'art from a beautiful era gone by. Art and antique lovers will cherish every moment they spend here.
The Conservatoire is a center of musical education which offers classes in instruments and voice grouped by age, in classical dance, and in theater. It grew from humble beginnings in the end of the 19th Century, when military musicians of Asnières offered weekly classes in music to the youth of the town. Student and professional performances are frequently hosted in the auditorium.
The seasonal program of the Théâtre de Cachan is crafted to respond to a public with diverse tastes with a genre of artistic expression that is rapidly growing and complicating, and the theater attempts to represent the virtues of sincerity, talent, truth, and beauty. The works performed here are often classic pieces of theater by great playwrights from around the world.
The Conservatoire National Supérieur d'Art Dramatique is a specialized dramatic arts school located in Paris' 9th arrondissement. It provides two halls primarily used for student productions, although it loans the space from time to time. The théâtre is a grand multi-tiered structure decorated with pillars and a subtle Mediterranean color palate, while the salle Louis Jouvet is outfitted in warm wood tones and has seating for 120 people.
Devoted to the education of the community in music, dance, singing, studying an instrument individually or in an ensemble, the Conservatoire National de Région of La Courneuve offers classes to children and adults of five years and older. Throughout the season, concerts and shows of all the subjects offered in classes are held at the Conservatoire. Fees are on a sliding scale, and determined case-by-case through a family quotient system.
This old piping workshop at the end of an alley has been transformed into the premier dramatic center of Paris' 19th arrondissement. Atelier du Plateau acts as a mutable space, where circus mixes with contemporary music, theater, jazz, and dance. The decor is constantly changing, but the walls have stood for many years and the building is crowned by large glass windows.