France: the world of culture and the coronavirus

Text by: Sarah Tisseyre

The French government's decision to ban gatherings of more than 1,000 people in France to curb the spread of the coronavirus will have very significant consequences in the cultural world. It remains to be seen how the entertainment world is trying to organize itself.

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The Philharmonie de Paris did not wait for the official decree prohibiting gatherings of more than 1,000 people. She canceled all her concerts in the large Pierre Boulez hall and its 2,400 seats, for the next two weeks.

90 theaters in France were already affected by the ban on gatherings of 5,000 people, decreed last week.

There are now many more ... In Paris alone, we can cite, among others, the Opera, Châtelet, Grand Rex, Salle Pleyel, Olympia, Théâtre Mogador, Folies Bergères, Bataclan, the Champs-Élysées Theater, the Palais de Chaillot ... the list goes on, and everyone is trying to get organized.

There are outright cancellations, postponed performances. The Opéra Comique indicated that it was also studying the possibility of reducing its size to less than 1,000 seats.

Or restricting attendance is what museums have started to do. The Louvre welcomed Monday only visitors with electronic tickets and recipients of free admission.

But all professionals in the sector are worried about future economic losses. We are entering a zone of turbulence, says the Federation of companies in the performing arts (Fesac), music, audiovisual and cinema. It requests the establishment of an emergency fund.

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• Culture
• France
• Coronavirus

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