The Off Festival smallEach July, the entire city of Avignon turns into a gorgeous giant theatre. It has two strands, the main festival (the "In") and the fringe (the "Off"). In 2023 the In ran from 5-25 July and the Off ran from 7-30 July.

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News for the Avignon Theatre FestivalLooking a bit further ahead, the Avignon Festival will take place earlier than usual in 2024, when it will run from 29 June-21 July. This is so that it will not clash with the Olympic Games being held in Paris (and Marseille) that summer.

tiago rodriguesFor four years starting from September 2022 the Festival has a new Director, Portugal's Tiago Rodrigues, pictured, who runs the National Theatre in Lisbon.

He has brought several productions to Avignon in recent years including 2021's The Cherry Orchard and 2022's Iphigénie. He has now taken over the Festival itself from Olivier Py who ran it from 2014-2022.

Monsieur Rodrigues' first programme offered 44 shows, including 33 premieres, and was marked by a strong female presence. In fact over half the productions were by female directors or choreographers.

Two women launched the programme on 5 July. The hip-hop director Bintou Dembélé presented a promenade production called G.R.O.O.V.E.

Over at the Palais des Papes. Julie Deliquet’s Welfare was based on the 1973 documentary of that name by the revered American film-maker Frederick Wiseman. It followed a day at a social centre in New York, its workers and the people in need who visit it.

Three concerts also plugged into the spirit of the 70s, with tributes to David Bowie, Lou Reed and Neil Young.

Krystian Lupa's very keenly anticipated Les Émigrants was cancelled shortly before the Festival following reports of tensions between the director and his production team.

Monsieur Rodrigues intends to spotlight a different language every year and in 2023 it was English, with productions from the UK, Canada and the United States. Tim Crouch, Trajal Harrell, Alistair McDowall and Alexander Zeldinare were among the featured directors.

He is also especially keen to attract young audiences who might not have visited the theatre before with discounted tickets. The online box-office opened early, to enable people to plan their trips and get better deals on travel and accommodation.

Click here to read about the Avignon Festival in 2014, in 2015, in 2016, in 2017, in 2018, in 2019, in 2021 and in 2022. The Avignon In and Off Festivals were both cancelled in 2020.

The Festival d'Avignon at the Palais des PapesPictured: the courtyard at the Palais des Papes, the Festival's flagship venue.

A THUMBNAIL HISTORY

The main Festival d'Avignon was founded in France's heady post-war years by Vilar, with a production of Shakespeare's Richard II - a play then relatively little-known in France - in the Cours d'Honneur, the vast inner courtyard of the Palais des Papes.

Aiming to make culture more widely accessible, Vilar acted as the Festival d'Avignon's Artistic Director until his death in 1971. His work, and the history of the festival, are celebrated in a museum in Avignon, the Maison Jean Vilar.

Juliette Binoche, Nicolas Bouchard in Miss JuliePictured: Juliette Binoche and Nicolas Bouchard in August Strindberg's Miss Julie at the 2011 Avignon Festival.

Today the Festival d'Avignon forms a quartet of important midsummer arts festivals in Provence alongside the Festival d'Aix and the Chorégies d'Orange (opera and classical music) and the Rencontres d'Arles (photography).

Unlike the three other festivals, Avignon suffers, of course, from the handicap of language. Though the city is in the heart of one of the most popular regions in Europe for English-speaking tourists, the Festival d'Avignon has admitted in the past to difficulties in attracting these.

It has been attempting to combat this by including a generous component of visually-oriented events as well as by inviting English-speaking artists and providing an English-language newsletter and multi-lingual synopses to many of the productions.

Undoubtedly, the spectacular setting of the Cours d'Honneur, which can accommodate 2000 spectators, is still the festival's principal focus. But today it spills over into dozens of other venues all over - and around - the walled city, and across the wider region.

A rich mix of theatre, dance, comedy, film and mime, the Festival d'Avignon premieres many new works and productions, a number of which later go on to tour nationally and internationally. Around two-thirds of them are either French or international premieres.

Running roughly concurrently, the Festival du Off in Avignon was established over 30 years ago. It's one of the largest independent theatre festivals in the world, comparable in size to the Edinburgh Fringe.

And it's also an important showcase for independent theatre companies to secure national tours for their new productions over the coming year.

Village du Off, Festival d'AvignonUnlike the main festival, which invites and subsidises a select handful of top-flight international companies, the Off is open to anyone who can fund and find a venue for their production. It now attracts over 1500 companies each summer.

The Off Festival kicks off with an opening procession through the centre of Avignon. In the following weeks, the visiting actors stage their shows and spectacles anywhere they can: churches, schools, shops, museums, open-air cloisters and not least the streets.

These venues are dotted all over town and there's been an increasing effort to reach out to the outlying suburbs, though the heart of the Off remains around the picturesque rue des Teinturiers in the Old Town.

In this area you can also find the big air-conditioned circus tent which acts as the headquarters of Avignon's Off Festival.

Here you can buy tickets, get a copy of the programme, attend debates, listen to live music in the early evening and, most importantly, hang out in the festival bar.

 

PRACTICAL INFORMATION

insidertipIn an effort to attract younger audiences, the main festival has reduced tariffs for spectators under 26 as well as for jobseekers. Other visitors can buy a Carte Festival which then gives you a discount on all theatre tickets.

The Off Festival has its own season ticket (carte d'abonnement) which is available to everyone and gives you a 30 per cent discount on ticket prices, plus further discounts on museums and monuments in Avignon and Villeneuve lès Avignon and other attractions such as the little tourist train.

Hotel Cloitre Saint Louis, Avignon: the modern wingThe main Festival d'Avignon is based at the Cloître Saint-Louis, a 17th century monastery converted into a hotel, pictured left. Cloître Saint Louis, 20 rue du Portail Boquier, 84000 Avignon. Website for the Festival d'Avignon

Tickets are sold online, by phone, tel (+33) 4 90 14 14 14, or at various outlets around the city. If you are in France, Belgium or Switzerland, you can buy tickets for the Festival d'Avignon at the chain of FNAC music and book stores.

During the festival itself, tickets are also on sale at the official shop on the place de l'Horloge.

The Festival du Off is based at 6 rue Pourquery de Boisserin, 84000 Avignon. Tickets are on sale at the Avignon Tourist Office (41 cours Jean-Jaurès), at the Mairie (Town Hall) on the place de l'Horloge, at "Le Point OFF" at 24 boulevard Saint Michel or via theOff Festival website.

Click here for our full guide to the best places to eat in Avignon, from Michelin-starred gastronomic restaurants to great-value informal brasseries. Pictured: the very popular place des Corps Saints at the height of the festival.

place des corps saints avignon festivalAccommodation is at an absolute premium, especially if you are planning to be in Avignon on or around Bastille Day (14 July), which is a national holiday in France.

Hotel prices can soar by up to a third during July and often become even more expensive than Paris. Be sure to pre-book a room. We speak from experience! AirBnB is always an option too, of course.

It is worth considering staying just outside the walled city, on the very large Barthelasse Island (which has several campsites) in the middle of the Rhône river.

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Alternatively, nearby Villeneuve lès Avignon is within walking distance and has a regular bus service. Click here for more suggestions for where to stay in Avignon.

Insider Tip: Where to Stay During the Avignon FestivalIf you read French, try the Off Festival site's French-language page of classified ads, which includes offers of accommodation.

And if you are unwise enough to arrive without a reservation, the Tourist Office maintains a daily list of available vacancies for you to try your chances on the spot.

Finally, car drivers should note that much of the walled inner city is pedestrianised for the duration of the two festivals.

Police have cracked down on wild parking with hefty fines and a trip to the car pound. You have been warned! Click here to read about driving in Avignon and the city's parcs relais (out-of-centre car-parks).

 

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