‘They are wrecking the Palais Garnier’

‘They are wrecking the Palais Garnier’

main

norman lebrecht

November 06, 2015

Operagoers are outraged at the removal of a number of partitions at the old Paris Opéra in order to cram in more seats in the central balcony.

A petition has gone up to stop the vandalism, ordered by Opéra director Stéphane Lissner, apparently without Ministry authorisation. The Palais Garnier ought to be untouchable. It belongs to us all.

Sign here.

.paris opera garnier

Comments

  • Marc-Antoine Hamet says:

    Norman,

    Please ask Stephane Lissner what is his view on this matter.

    Just asking us to sign may not be enough!

    • CDH says:

      You mean, like, report the story? You must be new to Slipped Disc. People send NL links, he barely reads them, which leads to lots of misreads and inaccurate blog posts. He does not go out and follow up a story he has been put on to. This is a gossip tabloid, not journalism.

    • Emil says:

      Slipped Disc is as “Fair and Balanced” as is Fox News.

  • Thomas Barrel says:

    Pure gossip? Just go and have a look at what they’ve done, you morons. They’re just destroying this wonderful hall!

    • CDH says:

      I wasn’t talking about this incident. I was responding to the rookie’s notion that NL would go out and report this story, interview Lissner, etc.

      I don’t know the hall, but I utterly agree that what is going on there sounds barbarous. Aside from anything else, most halls are much too big.

  • Theodore McGuiver says:

    Stéphane Lissner’s ignorance is clearly not confined to his knowledge of mainstream operatic repertoire.

  • Tom Graham says:

    Are you sure Stephane Lissner is in contral of the garner Theatre ? Does anyone know Lissner. I do! His work at the Chatalet, Aix Festival, LaScala and now in Paris is beyond reproach !! It is not an accident he has worked at the highest level for many years.

  • Tony Milne says:

    Palais Garnier ? Ruined ?
    Maybe if they washed off the graffiti on the roof it would be worth saving, but at the moment it looks like a cross between a Patagonian bordello and a Metro underpass.

  • Christophe Dilys says:

    Here is Stephane Lissner’s point of view. He explained himself in this article.
    I think it’s necessary to REALLY know what we are talking about before signing petitions. It’s important to outrage ourselves, that’s for sure, but let’s do it when we know everything, it keeps rumors from spreading and growing.
    Same goes for the cow they’re using for Moses und Aaron at Bastille.

    http://www.la-croix.com/Culture/Musique/Stephane-Lissner-defend-les-travaux-a-l-Opera-Garnier-2015-11-08-1378028

  • Outraged from Tunbridge Wells says:

    Just goes to show how little culture means for the rot at the top. Lissner is a vile, ignorant social climber, who has always pandered to the press and had his back rubbed in return. It is little wonder he thinks he is above the genius of Charles Garnier and can allow himself to correct the architect. But whereas Garnier’s genius has ensured his posterity, Lissner’s mediocre box-ticking legacy will disappear the moment after he dies.

  • MOST READ TODAY: