Le Lido, behind the scenes, 2020
Every year, half a million visitors from all over the world come to admire the artists of the famous Parisian cabaret located on the Champs-Élysées, inaugurated in 1946.
Serge Picard has slipped into the backstage area of the Lido where 300 people work in teams to prepare each performance. In the workshops, 200 headdresses and 600 costumes are made by the seamstresses to dress the artists.
Every evening the artists put on two shows which, 365 days a year, start at 5pm with the setting of a thousand place settings. 35 cooks and pastry chef work tirelessly to ensure an unforgettable evening for the visitors.
But it is behind the stage that one really realizes the unique effervescence of the place. A few hours before the start of the show the body is put to the test: the artists warm up and repeat their choreographies one last time. In the dressing rooms, the dancers put on their make-up and costumes before making their entrance.
At a frantic pace, 60 artists enter on the stage in wonderful costumes and props made of feathers, diamantes and sequins. For one hour and forty-five minutes, dancers, singers and acrobats follow one another throughout the 20 scene that never cease to amaze the spectators.
Behind the curtain, the dressers stand ready, with costumes and props for the following scene. Nothing is left to chance, s the artists only have a few seconds to change.
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Hôtel Paul Delaroche
58 rue Saint Lazare, 75009 Paris
+33 1 53 01 85 85
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