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My journey around Paris started off at the Colonne de Juillet, located on the Place de la Bastille. My hotel was located in this area, and this was one of the first views of Paris I got. The long column, almost 52 metres high, with the gold statue on top was towering high above anything else in the area. And like everything in Paris this column has a long history to it.
The Colonne de Juillet is located in the middle of the square and is surrounded by a rather busy roundabout. The square and its surroundings are often referred to as the 'Bastille', which is a lively and popular area in Paris, with lots of cafes and bars. But, hahaha, I guess I am getting on a side-track here; back to the column and why it is placed here....
The column dates back to July 28, 1840, and was build in order of King Louis-Philippe (1773 – 1850) who wanted a monument to commemorate both the French revolution of 1789 (also known as the storming of the Bastille) and the "three glorious days" of the July revolt in 1830. The column is located roughly where the medieval Porte Sainte-Antoine once stood.
On a sunny day the glistering gold-leafed bronze statue on top will certainly draw your attention. This is the Génie de la Liberté (the Spirit of Freedom) and was designed by sculptor Augustin-Alexandre Dumont.
Interested in reading more about the history of the Place the La Bastille and the July revolution? Then these two external links might be something for you:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revolution_of_1830
http://www.discoverfrance.net/France/Paris/Monuments-Paris/Bastille.shtml#Overview Leave a Comment Address: Place de la BastilleDirections: Place de la Bastille In the quarter 'Marais' 12th Arrondissement Métro stop: Bastille
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This magnificent new opera house was built in the 1980s and inaugurated in 1989 on the 200th anniversary of the French Revolution. It is one of two large venues run by the Opéra National de Paris, the other being the Opéra Garnier.
Between these two venues they manage to put on 380 full-scale opera and ballet performances per year. Last season they sold 89.5 % of the available tickets for the opera and 83.3 % for the ballet.
Unlike most German opera companies, they do not have a permanent ensemble of singers, but hire the singers separately for each production. They do have a permanent orchestra and chorus, though. The orchestra has 170 members and is often divided into two halves, known as the green and blue orchestras, when two different productions are on the schedule at the two venues.
Second photo: The Opera Bastille from the front.
Third photo: "Raise the anchor of your emotions" was their motto for the 2006/2007 season.
Fourth photo: At the stage entrance on Rue de Lyon there are hardly any bicycles parked, unlike what you would see at a German opera house.
Fifth photo: The ticket office at 130 rue de Lyon. Leave a Comment Address: Opera Bastille, 120 rue de Lyon, 75012 ParisPhone: 01 43 44 71 74Directions: 48°51'6.34" North; 2°22'12.24" East. Métro: BastilleWebsite: http://www.operadeparis.fr/
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 Opera National de Paris
Bastille by sim1
Also located on the Place de la Bastille is the interesting building of the Opéra National de Paris Bastille. It is hard not to notice this building as it is in such a sharp contrast with the more historical surroundings. But I can't say it is ugly, or out of tone with the rest, I actually found the architecture rather interesting and fascinating to look at. Unfortunately with the busy square in front of it, it wasn't so easy to get a good view (especially with the camera) of the whole building.
I haven't been inside, although I wouldn't mind taking a peek there! The design on the outside is quite impressive and it made me wonder how the inside would be like. The Opera building was inaugurated on July 13, 1989, on the 200th anniversary of the storming of the Bastille.
When talking about opera, one name here on VT comes to mind right away: VT member Nemorino. He has been to Paris recently and saw no less then 8 operas during his stay. So if you are interested in seeing an opera, do drop by on his pages, he has a wealth of information about the opera on them. Leave a Comment Address: Place de la BastilleDirections: Place de la Bastille In the quarter 'Marais' 12th Arrondissement Métro stop: BastilleWebsite: http://www.operadeparis.fr/
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The first opera performance I saw here was La Damnation de Faust by Hector Berlioz (1803-1869). There is some controversy about whether this is really an opera -- the composer called it a "dramatic legend" -- but it certainly seemed like an opera they way they staged it here at the Bastille. They used stunning lighting and video effects, as well as large groups of perfectly synchronized dancers and acrobats. And musically it was first-rate as well, right up there with the two CD versions of it that I have at home.
Very different but just as good was the performance of L'Elisir d'amore by Gaetano Donizetti (1797-1848), which -- as I mentioned on my Paris intro page -- was the opera I saw on my last evening in the city after meeting two young singers at the Place des Vosges.
Second and third photos: The Bastille Opera has 2703 seats (1571 downstairs, 518 in the first balcony, 516 in the second and 98 in the galleries), and they claim you can see and hear perfectly well from all of them. I can certainly confirm that this is true of the two seats I have tried in different parts of the hall, and I have no reason to doubt that the other 2701 seats are just as good.
Fourth photo: Taking their bows at the end of La Damnation de Faust.
Fifth photo: People outside in front of the opera house after the performance. Leave a Comment Address: Opéra Bastille, 120 rue de Lyon, 75012 ParisPhone: 01 43 44 71 74Directions: Métro Bastille Bus 20, 29, 65, 69, 76, 86, 87, 91 48°51'6.34" North; 2°22'12.24" East. Website: http://www.operadeparis.fr/
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 1. Beneath the stage at the
Opéra Bastille by Nemorino, 4 more photos
The tours are in French, basically, but on the tour I took there was a young Asian couple that didn't understand French, so our guide repeated the main points in English. And he apologized profusely to the three Italian ladies that he couldn't do it in their language ("the language of opera, after all").
We started out by descending six floors (by escalator) to the lowest level, thirty meters below street level.
Second photo: From the lowest level there are huge elevators to bring things up to the stage.
Third photo: The workshops are huge compared to those in most opera houses I have seen. In fact everything about the Opéra Bastille is huge: the area at ground level is 22,000 square meters, and the total height is eighty meters, including the thirty meters below street level.
Fourth photo: One of the storage areas at stage level, with the same dimensions as the main stage.
Fifth photo: Part of the stage set for Wagner's Lohengrin, ready for use on the following evening. All the performances of Lohengrin were sold out, by the way, even though the large hall of the Opéra Bastille seats 2703 people. Leave a Comment
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 The Colonne de Juillet
and Opéra Bastille by bpacker
(For those of you who don't know what the hell I am talking about, the Bastille was a prison which was stormed by the Mob in 1789 at the start of the French Revolution.)
Today, this square is also home to the Opéra Bastille, an alternative opera built for those who are turned off by the grandeur of the Opera Garnier. Leave a Comment Address: Place de la Bastille, 75004 ParisDirections: Metro: Bastille
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 by rukiLeave a Comment
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This symbolic place in France's history, where the events of 1789 took place, is dominated today by the July Column.
The construction works to the fortified residence, called La Bastille, were started in 1370.
Among the renowned prisoners closed in La Bastille we can mention Mirabeau and Voltaire, but also the Man in the Iron Mask.
Following the events that took place on July 14th, 1789 La Bastille was demolished and today paving stones mark the former building.
July Column (Colonne de Juillet) is 52m high and is dominated by the statue of Liberty. Directions: M: Bastille (lines 1, 5 and 8)
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Opera Bastille is a part of the "Grands Projets" initiated by the former president Francois Mitterrand; it was built by the architect Carlos Ott and inaugurated on July 14th 1989 (the celebration of the bicentennial of the French Revolution). Leave a Comment Address: 120 Rue de Lyon, 75012 ParisPhone: +33 (1) 44 73 13 99Directions: Place de la BastilleWebsite: www.opera-de-paris.fr
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 La Colonne de Juillet, at
Place de la Bastille by Jefie,
2 more photos
The area where the Bastille once stood is now called Place de la Bastille. In the middle of the roundaboud, you can see the Column of July (La colonne de Juillet). The column is over 50 m tall and on top of it sits the angel of liberty. Another comparatively new feature around Place de la Bastille is the Opera Bastille, inaugurated on the 200th anniversay of the Prise de la Bastille (July 14, 1989). It is a round, modern-looking building which I didn't find that attractive, but I did enjoy sitting on the steps of the Opera to eat a baguette. There are quite a few good bakeries on the nearby rue de la Roquette (which leads to the Pere-Lachaise cemetery) where you can buy a good lunch at a very reasonable price. Leave a Comment Address: Place de la BastilleDirections: Le Marais area, metro Bastille.
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