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Paris Fringe 2018: International theatre festival, October 11-14

9/30/2018

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Get your Fringe On!
This year’s festival runs from Thursday, October 11 to Sunday, October 14, 2018 at the Théâtre de Verre, in Paris’s 19th arrondissement.

The festival features work from international theatre groups as well as France-based companies with a focus on innovative approaches to theatre and an emphasis on contemporary themes.

English is the main language for performances and other events related to the festival. Alongside the shows are a variety of workshops, talks and events to provide artists and audiences with opportunities to interact and exchange. The Festival also includes the launch of the Fresh Faces Fringe program which features a small selection of works in,progress and excerpts from upcoming productions in the Paris area.

Festival passes are 20 euros with a reduced rate of 16 euros for students. The festival pass gives access to two main shows as well as other side events and music.

For the full schedule and details on shows, head to the Paris Fringe website and follow the Fringe on Twitter and Facebook.

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French Food  Adventures in Paris

2/25/2018

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PictureCornucopia of Paris pastries at the café Les Deux Magots in Paris. Photo by Victoria Cyr.
Guest blogger Victoria Cyr on French food adventures in Paris.

When Ernest Hemingway wrote “Paris is a moveable feast", he was right in every sense of the word including being surrounded by sumptuous food 24/7 (which means French gastronomy even sneaks its way into your sleep). However living in Paris, if I don’t resist the ever-present temptation to indulge, there will be a lot more moving on me than I’d like...so although I walk a lot, I still need Pilates and jogs along the Seine.

Other hobbies of mine include champagne and French wine (vin rouge in particular), but perhaps the greatest temptation are the amazing boulangeries because they’re everywhere you turn — it’s as if they follow you around.

​They’re a huge part of the beauty of living in Paris, but every time I buy my delicious, freshly baked baguette or morning almond croissant and the lovely mademoiselle smiles and asks if I’d like anything else, the world stops for a moment as I scan the pastries, quiches and croque monsieurs one more time before regaining the fortitude to say, “Non, merci. La prochaine fois.” Naturally other days I break down and leave with my arms full of savory assortments remembering that life is short and la vie est belle.

That being said, having a strategy is helpful. Cheese and chocolate are two other delectable dangers I adore. Usually I just buy two or three pieces of chocolate (maybe four) versus a box, to avoid the angst of trying to hide it somewhere so I won’t be tempted to eat it all at once.

​The other day I stepped into a chocolate store I’d never been to near metro Vaneau and for the first time ever, the woman behind the counter looked at me suspiciously and said there was a minimum order of ten, so that solved that dilemma for the day and I left empty-handed.

Of course enjoying the glorious French gastronomy is a gift that I appreciate every day and one of the many special things I miss every time I’m away — and a beautiful temptation I can’t imagine living without. 

Follow Victoria on Twitter or Instagram for more Paris discoveries.


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Broadway Chez Nous: Music and Rhythm on the River Seine

3/29/2016

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Irene On The Scene guest blogger Victoria Cyr on a magical musical moment in Paris.

On a spring night in Paris there we were...in a festive atmosphere of a beautifully restored barge on the right bank of the river Seine. Just a few minutes from Notre Dame and the Hotel de Ville. A night celebrating the wonderful works of women composers and lyricists of musical theatre. I was mesmerized by the melodious magic of the extraordinary talent of the Paris-based troupe American Musical Theatre Live.

In a cozy cabin down below with red candles aglow on every table and people reveling with food and drinks, the show opened with a huge splash of Broadway at its best with an ensemble number of “There’s No Business Like Show Business” that would make Ethel Merman proud. The lively performance made you want to jump on stage and quit your day job.....we were catapulted to Broadway while looking out the boat's portholes at Paris architecture on the romantic banks of the Seine.

From the swooning love song, "The Way You Look Tonight" performed by the effervescent and engaging Quentin Bruno, to the humorous tune interpreted by Marion Préïté who clearly didn't seem timid in her highly energetic Broadway-belting performance of “Shy”.

The touching ballad “Love Who You Love” with the emotionally expressive voice of Jérome Bortaud stole my heart. And I loved the beautiful, riveting duet by David Koenig and Miranda Crispin from the musical “The Secret Garden”. Crispin also rocked the house singing and playing piano with a song from “The Carole King Musical”.

Another highlight of the night featured three Paris-based women composers performing their songs, starting with the lovely Devon Graves who took the audience on a journey with her emotionally-charged vocals and her rocking guitar rhythms of her very catchy song “Crosswords”. “Ballerina Dance”, written and beautifully expressed by the powerful voice of Andrea Offner, was a wonderful homage for every woman in the audience. The charming Australian composer Kym Mc accompanied Quentin Bruno on her poignant song “Let You Down".

The impeccable comedic timing of Mary Louise Stott performing “I Want Them Bald” had the audience laughing all the way through the song. And the dynamic quips between Stott and the show’s brilliant pianist Mathieu Serradell (whom by the way, has a very full head of hair) were hilarious.

Another song performed by Graves, “Words Unsaid”, an English adaptation from the French show “Lemon Twist” by Stéphane Ly-Coung and Christine Khandjian, almost broke my heart, but in a really good way.

The music left us all wanting more...and I hummed show tunes all the way home through the streets of Paris.

For more information on upcoming performances visit the website of American Musical Theatre Live.

Follow Victoria on Twitter or Facebook for more Paris discoveries.

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The Lights are Not Out: Amazing Story of a Woman with Alzheimer's and the Rejuvenative Power of Art

10/30/2015

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Picture Hilgos, who had Alzheimer's, painting with art students. Engaging in creative arts reopened doors of communications and improved her quality of life.

Did you know that Alzheimer’s is the only disease in the top ten causes of fatalities without a prevention, treatment or cure?  And that in
the United States, there are more than 15 million Alzheimer's and dementia caregivers? The disease was first noted over 100 years ago by German physician Aloysius "Alois" Alzheimer. Today while researchers are making strides towards learning more about the mechanisms of this disease, it seems we are still nowhere close to finding a treatment.  What recourse can people take? 

A powerful documentary which broadcasts on public television stations nationwide in October and November 2015 provides inspiration and hope.

Berna Huebner serendipitously discovered one way to tackle Alzheimer’s—through the power of the creative arts. In 1995, her mother Hilda Gorenstein (an artist also known as Hilgos) was moved to a Chicago-area nursing home because of steadily worsening Alzheimer’s. She stopped communicating and became a part of the stigmatization, solitude and isolation that is connected with this disease. The staff at the nursing home commented that her “lights were out.”

Berna was visiting her mother one day, and had the idea to ask her mom if she’d like to paint. Hilgos, who had been uncommunicative for some time, looked at her daughter and had an astonishing reply: “Yes, I remember better when I paint.”

Having been told of this amazing moment, her mother’s doctor suggested that art students engage in painting with her mom. Back in the 1990s, this was an innovative and pioneering idea.

It turns out that the lights were not out. Berna was amazed to see her mother’s steady improvement, in both speech as well as physical mobility, thanks to the use of art and creativity. The engagement in the creative arts reopened doors of communications, and improved the quality of life for Hilgos.

Since her mother’s passing in 1998, Berna has been committed to raising awareness of the positive impact of the creative arts on people with Alzheimer’s and is co-director of a documentary film inspired by her mother’s words which is set to broadcast nationwide on PBS in November 2015. [Click here for broadcast listings.]

As noted in the documentary’s information page: I Remember Better When I Paint, narrated by legendary Academy award-winning actress Olivia de Havilland, is the first international documentary about the positive impact of art and other creative therapies on people with Alzheimer’s and how these approaches can change the way society looks at the disease.

Leading doctors and neurologists explain how parts of the brain can be spared and discuss the life-enriching benefits of these new approaches. Among these experts are Dr. Robert Butler, a founding director of the National Institutes on Aging (NIH) and a Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Dr. Samuel Gandy of Mt. Sinai School of Medicine, Dr. Robert Green of Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School and Dr. Robert Stern, Professor of Neurology at Boston University.

Inspiring personal stories are featured, including that of Rita Hayworth, as told by her daughter, Yasmin Aga Khan, to highlight the transformative impact of art and other creative therapies and how they are changing the way we look at Alzheimer’s.

“I Remember Better When I Paint” is co-directed by Eric Ellena and Berna Huebner, and is a French Connection Films and Hilgos Foundation production. View the trailer to the film here.


The film is also available on DVD and includes a series of short supplemental films that further highlight special programs and flesh out the how-tos of organizing an outing, a creative workshop or recreating social bonds between people with Alzheimer's and their families.




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The documentary set to air nationwide on public television as of November 2015. The film is also available on DVD.



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English-Language Musical Theatre Scene in Paris

10/5/2015

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PictureAmerican Musical Theatre Live (AMT Live) presents the Salzman and Cunningham musical Next Thing You Know: October 12, 13, 19, 20 November 9, 10, 16, 17, 23 December 7, 18, 14, 15 Doors open at 19h30, Show starts at 20h at The Highlander Pub 8, rue de Nevers, 75006 Paris Metro Pont Neuf or St. Michel
Irene on the Scene chats with Miranda Crispin, an American in Paris, about the English-language musical theatre scene in the city of lights.

Miranda Crispin is in actress, director, singer and musical theatre teacher. She has a masters degree in Music Theatre/Opera Performance from Arizona State University, and a B.F.A. from Illinois Wesleyan University.  She studied French language at the Sorbonne and served as a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar to France. Miranda is performing this summer in the Parisian premiere of the musical Next Thing You Know. She is a co-founder and Artistic Director of the Paris-based organization American Musical Theatre Live!

Tell us about American Musical Theatre Live! Paris
Created in 2012, American Musical Theatre Live! Paris promotes international cultural exchange through master classes and Off-Broadway style productions in English featuring performers living in France. Past shows include the Parisian premieres of Edges by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, The Last Five Years and Songs for a New World by Jason Robert Brown. In Fall 2015, we’ll be reprising Next Thing You Know by Joshua Salzman and Ryan Cunningham. The show  premiered in Paris summer 2015 to sold out crowds. 

As an educational organization, we specialize in multidisciplinary and integrated musical theatre training, customized coaching for professional artists, as well as master classes led by our artists-in-residence from Broadway (such as Adam Kantor, Carmel Dean, Benj Pasek and Justin Paul) and the West End (such as David Gardiner). We also bring together performers at our monthly Broadway open mic where people share their musical talent, their compositions and their projects in a fun and friendly atmosphere.

Tell us more about the monthly open mic.
The Broadway in Paris open mic takes place the first Monday each month, except during summer break (July and August). When the open mic was launched in 2012, it was the first of its kind in Paris. The idea is to open up the stage, in a fun and relaxed way, so that performers can present the musical theatre piece of their choice. Performers bring their sheet music and there is a professional pianist who sight reads to accompany the artists. During these evenings, you’ll see professionals who currently play in productions in France, students, as well as guests from Broadway or the West End.

You can stay up to date on the open mic and other events by following us on Twitter or Facebook.

Tell us about the upcoming production of the musical Next Thing You Know.
Next Thing You Know is the story of four New Yorkers as they laugh, love and drink their way through the big questions that face all young dreamers who wake up in the city that never sleeps. Does marrying a really nice guy mean you’re settling down or just settling? Does taking a nine-to-five equal giving up or growing up? Does a decade in the city break you down or break you in.

This contemporary musical play, which takes place primarily in a cozy neighborhood pub, blends New York cabaret style with British pub theatre. The audience follows the humorous and touching stories of four characters who are exploring professional and personal life decisions.

The Paris production of this contemporary musical blends New York cabaret style with British pub theatre at a site-specific location: the underground Parisian pub theatre at The Highlander, located in Paris’ Latin Quarter steps away from the Seine.
The show is performed in the original English language version.

The cast features an international, Paris based group of artists led by Tolgay Pekin (Turkey) and musical director Mathieu Becquerelle (France), Lauren Berkman (USA), Frédéric Brodard (Switzerland), Quentin Bruno (France/USA),
Devon Graves (USA), Marion Préïté (France), Vinicious Timmerman
(Belgium/Brésil) and myself (USA/France).

Tickets available at: BilletReduc
For more information visit:  http://www.amtlive.org/ntyk




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A Perfect Paris Picnic...with the Eiffel Tower

6/17/2015

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PictureA view with the Eiffel Tower is the perfect picnic spot in Paris.
Irene On The Scene guest blogger Victoria Cyr on her Eiffel Tower love affair.

There are landmarks in the world both natural and human made that inspire us with awe and a comforting sense of familiarity at the same time, that give us goosebumps every time we’re lucky enough to look at something so breathtakingly beautiful…and the Eiffel Tower or Le Tour Eiffel, is one of them.


And it is also one of my favorite places for a picnic in Paris. Day, or night when she (or he…”it” seems too impersonal) sparkles on the hour with 1.am. being the last show.

Of course picnics are always fun, but especially with such delicious delights so readily available everywhere you look. Fresh produce, almost every cheese you could ever dream of, extraordinary bottles of wine, the ever-famous French baguettes and bread, and don’t forget (well it’s impossible anyway) the delectable desserts and pastries that might make you think you’re dreaming….(unless you eat too many and hop on a scale which I don’t recommend doing while you’re in Paris…)

After all, it is dreams that Paris is made of…and every day that I am here, I’m compelled to look at the awesome beauty, write a poem or two, watch her shimmy in the light as I smile all the way home, and fall asleep dreaming of the Eiffel Tower and the next time I see her…

PS…..if you’re too busy to pick up your own picnic goodies, check out these ideas from Paris Picnic.

Follow Victoria on Twitter or like her Facebook page for more Paris discoveries.



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Charming Italian Dining Discovery in Paris

5/22/2015

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Irene On The Scene guest blogger Victoria Cyr on a delicious Paris discovery.
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Paris is full of extraordinary cuisine, yet there's always something special to discover...and that's what happened on a sunny, sultry afternoon on my way to visit Montmartre.

Just as I descended another set of romantic and mysterious steps, a small wooden table with two cosy chairs on an ancient sidewalk suddenly appeared....

As sumptuous scents wafted through the restaurant's doorway, the charming owner and chef, Damien, welcomed me as though we were old friends....


The experience was like time travel between Italy and Paris....

I couldn't have been happier and can't wait to go back.
When you go... tell them Victoria sent you :)

Follow Victoria on Twitter or like her Facebook page for more Paris discoveries.




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Il Piccolo Rifugio 13 Rue Chappe, Paris 18eme Tel: 01 46 06 69 80 Metro: Abbesse
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File Under Paris: Vintage Fashion Find

3/3/2015

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Irene On The Scene guest blogger Victoria Cyr gets carried away with a favorite Parisian shopping experience.

Getting Carried a "Weigh" in Paris: Vintage Clothing

By Victoria Cyr

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The Kilo-Shop 125 Bld St Germain 75006 Paris France Tel:. +33 1 43 26 00 36
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Happy shopper gives a high five for vintage finds at the Kilo-Shop in Paris.
One of the many delights of traveling is discovering new things. Especially new and awesome things which is what happened on a gorgeous spring day in Paris when I took bus 96 to the Odéon stop (Saint-Germain-des-Prés in the 6th arrondissment) and serendipitously stumbled upon the Kilo-Shop. As soon as you walk through the door you’re catapulted into a paradise for vintage clothes lovers.

Against a soundtrack of a cool mix of retro and contemporary music that makes you wanna dance and sing along, I found a black dress stitched with silver sequins on the hem and a halter neckline that was perfect for spring or summer.
The nice young man next to me who was organizing a selection of stunning scarves explained how the system works.

Everything is color-coded and a different price per kilo depending on the color. You simply walk over to the scale, put your item on it, and weigh it (according to the color). I’d never seen anything like this in my life (except in the produce aisle) and it was so much fun! It felt a bit like being on a game show and a treasure hunt at the same time. The dress cost only ten euros and I was entertained.

In addition to what you can explore in this spacious three and a half floor dreamy store, everything is in perfect shape and neatly organized so you won’t  be traumatized rummaging through dusty boxes and shoving aside overly cramped coat hangers.

Follow Victoria on Twitter
or Facebook for more Paris discoveries.
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A Moment in the Life of Victoria Cyr in Paris, France

7/30/2014

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PictureParis...c'est magnifique!
Today I had little moment in Paris with Victoria Cyr poet, actress, singer/songwriter! Check out her interview on Riverwest Radio. 
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Where are some places that you are inspired to write?


I am inspired everywhere in Paris including McDonald's... so it's hard to say, but I love writing at the Les Arènes de Lutèce, in the 5th (a Roman gladiator arena that's now a beautiful park), on the terrace of Caf
é Pasteur (in the 15th) looking at the Eiffel Tower.    

Café de la Mairie at Saint-Sulpice is also very très special and inspiring creatively, in general for life ~ it sits to the side of my favorite fountain in Paris
~ partly because it's so quiet that I feel like I'm in the country! I'm in love with it and one night in the blink of an eye when no one sees...I'm swimming under the fountain's waterfalls surrounded by its enormous stone lions...in front of yet another astonishing, historical church (that The Da Vinci Code was inspired by or based on)...Vive La France!. Also anywhere along the banks of the Seine is inspiring. And a secret spot—place de Breteuil at the Louis Pasteur statue, with the Eiffel Tower to my left (I call her Madame Tour Eiffel, among other things as one name is too small for Her) and Les Invalides to my right. It's magic. I have to force myself to go home or I'll sleep there all night.
 

What monument do you like in Paris?

Well... I love all the monuments (how can you not?), but I have a specific affair with Madame Tour Eiffel. I can't look at her enough, and especially at night when she shimmers on the hour. Or searches with her beam of light. Although some people think it's a monsieur ~ but for me it's like Cher dressed as a glamorous superhero. She's my best friend-shaman-superhero-love. But...I'm also partial to Notre Dame. I don't want to be cliché, but they just excite me on every level, and I can't imagine my life without a gaze of them every day. The Jardin du Luxembourg is my favorite garden. I like to write there. I like to drink rosé wine there. I'd love to live there. I would like to be lost there and never be found. 


What is your favorite thing to do in Paris?

Eat cheese and bread and drink wine. Give me a glass of St. Emilion or something from the Languedoc region and I'm in heaven on earth. And...a slab of Camembert or a soft chevre cheese or Roquefort and I could just die....even though I haven't written my will. 


What is your favorite thing to say in French?

There are so many words that end with a vowel (she laughs) and I find the language very dramatic and theatrical, so it's festive to say anything in French including hamburger. However, I adore saying, j'adore, je deteste, and jamais (much more fun than never!)....also pourqoui pas is fun! Et chouchou is mignon!


What do you find extraordinary about Paris?


I think for me, in addition to the freaky-cinematic-beauty, what's most extraordinary about Paris is that I truly feel like anything can happen at any moment - more than I've ever felt in any other place in the world -- so far :)




PictureView of Les Invalides from the place de Breteuil.

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