"La Scala Provence", a multidisciplinary space which does not want to be focused solely on theatre, is added to the nearly 200 "intramural" performance venues during the Avignon Festival and the "off" in July.
Only a handful are permanent rooms.
"I met all the permanent theaters of Avignon and, obviously, at the start, they did not see us arrive with much happiness", jokes Frédéric Biessy, co-director of "La Scala Provence" with his wife Mélanie, at the head of an investment fund.
"But I told them: + You are wrong because there are things you cannot do because your sets are too small, you will do programming with us," he told AFP.
It aspires to become like a "junction" between the Festival d'Avignon, more international and specialized, and the "off", more commercial.
The "off" of Avignon is often criticized for its plethoric offer (1,500 shows) but, for Mr. Biessy, La Scala Provence "is not going to be an additional room but a complementary one".
Its four halls - including one with 600 seats, one of the largest in Avignon - will indeed be transformed the rest of the year into rehearsal and recording venues with its own label, "La Scala Music". (classical, contemporary, jazz, pop, rap), and a latest generation immersive sound device.
The Avignonnais know the place well since it is the historic cinema of the city, the Capitol, built in the 1930s, before closing its doors in 2015, having not resisted the multiplexes.
"All the Avignonnais came to see their first film here, there is an emotional bond", assures Mr. Biessy, who says he had "a crush".
"We were initially looking for a rehearsal place for the artists who performed at La Scala Paris", the Biessy couple's first theater inaugurated in 2018.
Among the twenty shows of this first edition, successful pieces ("Histoire d'Amour" by Alexis Michalik, "La Machine de Turing"), contemporary circus from Quebec (Machine de Cirque, Flip Fabrique) and many comedy shows.
© 2022 AFP