The Folies Bergère is a cabaret music hall, located in Paris, France. Located at 32 Rue Richer in the 9th Arrondissement, the Folies Bergère was built as an opera house by the architect Plumeret. It opened on 2 May 1869 as the Folies Trévise, with light entertainment including operettas, comic opera, popular songs, and gymnastics. It became the Folies Bergère on 13 September 1872, named after nearby Rue Bergère. The house was at the height of its fame and popularity from the 1890s' Belle Époque through the 1920s.
2013, after renovation of facade (originally created in 1926)
Jules Chéret, Folies Bergère, Fleur de Lotus, 1893 Art Nouveau poster for the Ballet Pantomime
Costume, c. 1900
Édouard Manet's A Bar at the Folies-Bergère, 1882
Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or drinking, does not typically dance but usually sits at tables. Performances are usually introduced by a master of ceremonies (M.C.). The entertainment, as performed by an ensemble of actors and according to its European origins, is often oriented towards adult audiences and of a clearly underground nature. In the United States, striptease, burlesque, drag shows, or a solo vocalist with a pianist, as well as the venues which offer this entertainment, are often advertised as cabarets.
Cafe Le Chat Noir c. 1920
The Café des Aveugles in the cellars of the Palais-Royal (beginning of the 19th century)
The composer Eric Satie playing the piano at Le Chat Noir (1880s)
The Moulin Rouge in 1893