Salle Favart, Opera house and theatre in 2nd arrondissement, France
Salle Favart is a Beaux-Arts opera house and theatre on Place Boïeldieu, built from 1893 to 1898 to designs by Louis Bernier. Its neo-Baroque stone facade rises in three tiers: three arched doorways with dark metal grilles at ground level, a balustraded balcony above three large arched windows framed in gilded ornament, and four pairs of draped statues on plinths between smaller square windows. A cornice with sculpted heads and a central curved roof section crown the building.
The first Salle Favart, designed by Jean-François Heurtier, opened on 28 April 1783 and burned down on the night of 14 or 15 January 1838. Its successor by Théodore Charpentier opened on 16 May 1840 and was destroyed by fire on 25 May 1887. Louis Bernier won the competition judged by five Grand Prix de Rome laureates, including Charles Garnier, and built the present theatre from 1893 to 1898.
The hall's stage saw premieres of French operas, among them Massenet's Cendrillon in 1899, Charpentier's Louise in 1900, Debussy's Pelléas et Mélisande in 1902 and Ravel's L'heure espagnole in 1911. Poulenc's La voix humaine followed in 1959, and Filidei's L'inondation in 2019.
The theatre is located at Place Boïeldieu near Boulevard des Italiens and is easy to find. Richelieu Drouot metro station on lines 8 and 9 is within walking distance.
The building features a hidden iron framework for fire resistance that is concealed behind stone facades to keep its traditional appearance. This innovative safety approach was important for theatres of that era.
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