Théâtre de Nîmes Bernadette Lafont

Inaugurated in 1800, the Opéra-Théâtre de Nîmes was located opposite the Maison Carrée until 1952, when an opera singer burnt it to the ground out of revenge. After the fire, the theater moved to the foyer communal, place de la Calade. In 1988, under the initiative of Jean Bousquet, then mayor of Nîmes, the building was renovated by architect Jean-Michel Wilmotte: the Opéra-Théâtre became the Théâtre de Nîmes. To this main auditorium was added, from 1993, the smaller Odéon auditorium. In 1990, the association Danse Musique Théâtre (DMT) was created to manage the two venues. The theater was then commissioned and supported by the French Ministry of Culture. In 1995, the DMT association changed its name to “Théâtres de Nîmes”, under the direction of Jean Lebeau. Major renovation work on the auditorium, the public and artist reception areas was undertaken in the 2000s. In 2012, the Ministry of Culture awarded the Théâtre de Nîmes the “Scène conventionnée” label for contemporary dance. Since 2018, the Théâtre de Nîmes has been a “Scène conventionnée d’intérêt national art et création – danse contemporaine”.

Théâtre de Nîmes’s website