Theaters Route de la soie

Ideally located on the Quai de Rive-Neuve, Badaboum Théâtre has dedicated its programming to young audiences for over 25 years. The shows and schedules are adapted for very young children, from 3 to 12 years old. On the program: puppet shows, story readings, circus shows and small fairy tales. A snack extends these moments of escape from poetry and history. Workshops and workshops in theatre, circus and dance are also offered during the week and during the holidays, mainly for 5-12 year olds, and occasionally for young actors. Finally, wake-up classes from 18 months are available.

Lulu has set up shop at Jean Macé. Lulu does us so much good, even more so in these times of "crises" in the plural, with its program of comedies full of madness to share. A colorful, cheerful theater, in the image of Renaud Gairard, the reopened head acrobat who decided to bring these walls back to life with a beautiful 180-seat auditorium and a table to enjoy along with the audience's comments. A place dedicated to comedy and laughter, to revivals of classic texts and to the most unusual creations, can only be salutary at a time when the performing arts need our support. Let's have fun with Lulu!

Lyon's first private theater, launched on January 17, 1980, and run by Pascal Héritier and Bruno Davanzo. The current venue on avenue de Saxe can accommodate 371 spectators between two confinements, and is often sold out. Audiences who book their seats at the Théâtre de la Tête d'Or well in advance know they're in for a good laugh, with plenty of misunderstandings and enthusiastic actors - often stage stars. The venue specializes in boulevard comedy and vaudeville, not forgetting the chansonniers.

While we await the hypothetical reopening of a VTG castelet (not to be confused with a fast train) at the GHD (we like to leave you in the lurch when it comes to initials), back to square one at the Parc de la Tête d'Or, where it all began for this company over 75 years ago. Guignol is a monument to Lyon's heritage, with its famous puppets and colorful characters. A Lyonnais tradition to be respected by all ages, as the show offers different levels of interpretation, not all of them innocent... Guignol, it's so good!

To each his own, but Les Célestins remains the best theater in France when it comes to creating shows. A splendid Italian-style theater whose programming is second to none, the venue alone is well worth a visit. Shows on tour, and others created and staged at Les Célestins, all under the leadership of director Pierre-Yves Lenoir, assisted by Lise Gaillard. Some 200,000 spectators enjoy them every year, especially the in-house creations. Numerous initiatives to promote access to culture and theater for all audiences, including reasonable ticket prices, workshops and encounters. Indispensable Célestins.

It's the Alexandrian version of the Cairo opera. Opened in 1921, it was designed by the French architect Georges Baroque. Initially named "Mohamed Ali Theatre", it was renamed in 1962 in homage to the pioneer of Arab music: Sayed Darwish. The gilding and red velvet armchairs of its hall have been renovated, you can visit it or attend one of the performances, which are usually shows that were given at the Cairo Opera House. Call for information on tours and the programme of events.

On the Quai Rive-Neuve proudly stands the Théâtre de La Criée, the national theater housed in Marseille's former fish market. A former meeting place for fishermen and fishmongers, it is now a mythical cultural meeting place under the sensitive, modern direction of Macha Makeïeff since 2011. According to its director, the theater is "a factory of images and the imaginary, open to all". Even today, the voices of this former market hall are heard loud and clear, its soul palpable and preserved. The interior comprises a large 800-seat auditorium with specially designed machinery, plus another 200-seat auditorium. On arrival, spectators enter a huge hall, a preface to contemporary theater and the most diverse forms of writing performed within it by the most singular thinkers.

Do we still need to introduce Toursky, the mythical theater founded by Richard Martin, one of Marseilles' leading cultural figures? This theatrical and human adventure is militant and committed to the fight against exclusion, obscurantism and intolerance. Each season brings a new batch of plays, with a novelty for young people, popular shows, superb sets and celebrities who often come to perform. The eclectic program includes plays, cabaret, cine-theater, cinema, poetic circus, dance, concerts, comedy, one-man shows, art exhibitions and more. The full program is available on their website.

Three years ago, the Mini-Theatre underwent significant transformations: renovation of the boxes and the technical grill. It is therefore in a technically more efficient and comfortable space that this small theatre of the shopping Cart welcomes artists and Spectators. In the image of La Wasteland, another wall theatre, located on the next number, with whom it shares the programming of the Lenche, the Mini reflects a cultural action associated with the life of the neighborhood. Theatres of entertainment, but also places of meetings with the public, dialogues with artistic teams, general rehearsals open to inhabitants of the 2nd arrondissement, moments of exchange on the essential issues that the show raises. When theatre creates a social link, it is often in these small places that are found by local troops. Same shirts for the Théâtre de Lenche, Wasteland du Panier and Mini-Théâtre. As the gauges are relatively small, reservations are strongly recommended.

Active since the seventeenth century, among the oldest theatres in the city, this small "Italian-style" theatre (with four orders of superimposed boxes) is dedicated to the great theatrical writer Carlo Goldoni who directed it from 1752 to 1761. It was for this stage that the Italian Molière composed his plays with immortal characters, including La Trilogia della villeggiatura, Sior Todero brontolon, Le Baruffe chiozzotte and Una delle ultime sere di carnovale, which continue to be performed there today alongside other shows.

Inaugurated in 1678, it was then called Teatro San Giovanni Grisostomo. An opera house, it expanded its repertoire to include comedy under the direction of Carlo Goldoni himself from 1730, and since 1837 has borne the name of the famous Spanish singer Maria Malibran. In 1996, the Malibran became the Theater of the Venetians, pending the reopening of the fire-damaged Fenice. It retains its remarkable period decorations and hosts classical music concerts and plays, under the same management as La Fenice.

Historic theater of post-war Venice, staging avant-garde programming with a focus on contemporary creation. For fans of the genre (Italian-speaking).

Le Petit Théâtre led by Janine Berdin still presents young, dynamic and entertaining shows for the pleasure of all audiences. As its name indicates, this Little Pocket Theatre is not very large, but its human size facilitates rapprochement with all the public, especially school students who can analyze the game of the actors under all the seams and almost under their noses! Traditionally, each representation is followed by an exchange between actors and public in a friendly relationship.

Located in the heart of Hamra near the AUH theatre, the Babel theatre has been directed since 2007 by Iraqi Jawad al-Asadi.

At the exit of the park by the Al-Ferghani street which crosses it (former Karl-Marx street) stands the Regional Theatre, former residence of the governor. Behind the facade of Soviet architecture, under the high ceilings of the palace, plays in Uzbek or Russian are played today, generally recounting in a rather classical way the epic of Uzbekistan under Tamerlan. Even if you don't speak the language, it can be quite interesting to experience the jovial atmosphere in the theatre during and after the performances.

The theatre of the Russian avant-garde has been emulated all over the world. In Tashkent, Mark Weil founded this independent theatre in the 1970s with a group of young acting students. It was one of the first theatres of its kind to appear in the Soviet bloc and it is almost a miracle that this scene has continued to exist until today. Some plays are subtitled in English, so don't miss the opportunity to see a unique show in the Uzbek cultural landscape.