The Th\u00e9\u00e2tre de Li\u00e8ge is one of the Centres Sc\u00e9niques de la F\u00e9d\u00e9ration Wallonie-Bruxelles (Belgium). To this designation can also be added Centre europ\u00e9en de cr\u00e9ation th\u00e9\u00e2trale et chor\u00e9graphique (European Centre for theatre and choreography<\/em>), relating to its role in theatrical and contemporary dance productions and their diffusion for local, regional and international audiences.<\/p>\n Since the arrival of Serge Rangoni<\/strong> at its head in 2004, the Institution has developed considerably, presenting each season around forty shows of which ten or so are new works.<\/p>\n The rich and varied programme brings to the stage productions of great theatre directors and Belgian and foreign choreographers, actors of international renown (Isabelle Huppert, M\u00e9lanie Laurent, Emmanuelle B\u00e9art, Toni Servillo, Denis Podalyd\u00e8s\u2026)<\/strong> as well as emerging artists, witnesses of today\u2019s culture and ambassadors of tomorrow\u2019s.<\/p>\n Every other year, alongside the \u201cseasonal\u201d programme, the Th\u00e9\u00e2tre de Li\u00e8ge makes Li\u00e8ge the town move to the beat of the \u00c9mulation festival, for young, francophone Belgian companies, who bring their freshness and (im)pertinence to different parts of the city.<\/p>\n Adding to these discoveries is the international biennial \u201cPays de Danses, a journey through all forms of international contemporary choreography (Batsheva Dance Company, Eun-Me Ahn Dance Company, Constanza Macras, Virgilio Sieni, Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker, …<\/strong>).<\/p>\n The seasons are also marked by two other major rendezvous:<\/p>\n The Th\u00e9\u00e2tre de Li\u00e8ge, situated at the heart of the Euregio-Meuse-Rhine and the Grande R\u00e9gion, transcends borders through its collaborations with prestigious international institutions such as the Festival d\u2019Avignon, the Th\u00e9\u00e2tres Nationaux de la Colline and de Chaillot from Paris, the Theatres of Luxembourg, Maastricht, Hasselt, and the National Theatre of Korea, and co-productions with today\u2019s great directors and choreographers \u00a0(Krzysztof Warlikowski, Christine Letailleur, La Tristura, Ivo van Hove, Pippo Delbono\u2026<\/strong>).<\/p>\n Its active participation in a wide range of European projects has strengthened its position in the international theatre spectrum alongside such famous places as the Schaub\u00fchne in Berlin, the Croatian National Theatre in Zagreb, the Od\u00e9on-Th\u00e9\u00e2tre de l’Europe, The S\u00e3o Luiz Teatro Municipal in Lisbon, the Gothenburg City Theatre, the Onassis Foundation in Athens, …<\/strong><\/p>\n The Th\u00e9\u00e2tre de Li\u00e8ge is involved in the associate production of a wide range of artists\u2019 shows from the F\u00e9d\u00e9ration Wallonie-Bruxelles or supports them in their development (Anne-C\u00e9cile Vandalem, Selma Alaoui, Antoine Laubin, Ayelen Parolin, Claudio Bernardo, Mercedes Dassy\u2026<\/strong>); by co-producing the work of foreign artists, access to the international stage, which benefits those Belgian artists supported by the theatre, is also made possible.<\/p>\n The Th\u00e9\u00e2tre de Li\u00e8ge welcomes 14 partner-artists (from 202024 to 2028) in the fields of theatre, danse, circus, young audience and authors.<\/p>\n Though the performing arts remain the priority within its programme – theatre and dance, mostly – the Th\u00e9\u00e2tre de Li\u00e8ge also regularly hosts, in its “salle des Pieds l\u00e9gers” gallery, exhibitions of contemporary art, in collaboration with museums and art centres, or with Belgian collections. On the occasion of the different festivals or one-off events, specific exhibitions highlighting the work of one artist in particular can also take place there.<\/p>\n With an audience of 65,000 <\/strong>and more than 250 performances for 40 to 60 shows\u00a0<\/strong>a season, the Th\u00e9\u00e2tre de Li\u00e8ge is today the leading stage in Wallonia and has a team of about sixty permanent staff including skilled workers in the costume and set design workshops.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n In 1779, the Prince-Bishop de Velbr\u00fcck created the Soci\u00e9t\u00e9 libre d\u2019\u00c9mulation, whose vocation was to cultivate the arts, sciences and humanities.<\/p>\n L\u2019\u00c9mulation \u2013 the building where this learned society used to meet \u2013 prospered through the years until 20 August 1914 when, due to German reprisals, the building was totally destroyed.<\/p>\n L\u2019\u00c9mulation was rebuilt in 1939 by Julien Koenig, employing a neoclassical design while using contemporary techniques.\u00a0 Sixty years later, the building, left unoccupied, was in an advanced state of decay.\u00a0 Classified as a monument in 1998, it was placed on the list of monuments in peril.\u00a0 In 2000, it was decided to restore l\u2019\u00c9mulation and to establish the Th\u00e9\u00e2tre de Li\u00e8ge here, \u201ctemporarily\u201d installed at Place de l\u2019Yser.<\/p>\n The Li\u00e8ge architects Pierre Hebbelinck and Pierre de Wit<\/strong> were in charge of the building\u2019s conversion, and it was inaugurated on October 2013.<\/p>\n Favouring wood, concrete and glass, the Th\u00e9\u00e2tre de Li\u00e8ge consists of a total area of 7,800 m2<\/sup> combining neoclassicism and contemporary design. Columns, mouldings and gilding sit alongside Vitra furniture by Jean Prouv\u00e9, the famous French designer, to create a stripped-down but warm atmosphere.<\/p>\n The architecture is punctuated with a textual intervention from the Li\u00e8ge visual artist-performer Patrick Corillon whose magic words animate the entire building.<\/p>\n Equipped with two stages, an art gallery as well as a rehearsal studio, the Th\u00e9\u00e2tre de Li\u00e8ge also provides welcoming communal spaces for its audiences: a bar – le Caf\u00e9 des Arts on the ground floor \u2013 and a restaurant in the magnificent rooms on the 2nd<\/sup> floor.<\/p>\n These spaces, places where the public can go to relax and enjoy themselves, are also perfectly adapted for all kinds of receptions, events or private evening parties.<\/p>\n\n
A jewel of Li\u00e8ge\u2019s heritage<\/h2>\n
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