Photo of the Week
Another view of the Centre Pompidou. Photo © Darren Palmer of Paris by Photo.
Wednesday, 30 May 2012 00:00
Paris Update What's New in Paris
RESTAURANT/CLUB/CAFE
Wanderlust: Finally, part of Les Docks, Cité de la Mode et Design will open to the public on June 6. Brunch on the terrace, take a yoga class, take in a concert or dance all night. 34, quai d'Austerlitz, 75013 Paris.
SHOPS
Stella Cadente: The designer of very feminine clothing and accessories has a new Paris store that's like a gold-lined tunnel. 102 boulevard Beaumarchais, 75011 Paris.
Ecolo-Chic: Pop-up store in the Marais selling ethically resourced products, from toys and design to organic wine. 90, rue des Archives, 75003 Paris.
SMOKING
A new organization, L'Union pour les Droits des Fumeurs Adultes, has been formed to lobby for the rights of French smokers
JUSTIN ON THE ROOFTOPS
Keep your eyes peeled: Justin Bieber will be filming for the Web TV program live@home in an undisclosed location on the rooftops of Paris on the evening of May 31. Click here to win a pass to the taping.
Wednesday, 30 May 2012 00:00
Paris Update Flash News
CAKE THE WAY WE LIKE IT
Goodies on display at Merce and the Muse.
Nowadays, American expatriates in Paris can easily satisfy almost all their nostalgic food cravings, from hamburgers to Reese’s peanut-butter cups or Oreo cookies. Until Merce and the Muse opened in the Upper Marais, however, it wasn’t easy to find good homemade, American-style cakes. The desserts at this homey, flea-market-furnished café are not just good, they are scrumptious and original, made from owner Merce Muse’s own recipes. The other day I shared a slice of chocolate layer cake with vanilla icing and another of pistachio cake with rose icing with a friend, but in truth I wanted to eat all of both of them. 1 bis, rue Dupuis, 75003 Paris. Tel.: 09 53 14 53 04. Open Tues.-Sun. for breakfast, lunch and coffee; brunch on Sunday. Heidi Ellison
Paris Update This Week's Events
For full details about an event, click on its name to visit the official Web site (in English when available).
 Art Saint-Germain-des-Prés
>Left Bank gallery walk. Collective opening, May 31, 6pm. May 31-June 3.
Carré Rive Gauche
>Another Left Bank gallery walk, with 120 participating galleries. June 1-June 3.
Champs-Elysées Film Festival
>A new Franco-American film festival, presided over by Lambert Wilson and Michael Madsen. Various locations, Paris, June 6-12.
Chartre en Lumières
> The town of Chartres illuminates its monuments and the cathedral with colorful light installations. Through Sept. 15.
Designer's Days
>Design shops, galleries, schools and more participate in a city-wide design event. Various locations, Paris, May 31-June 4.
Festival de l'Imaginaire
> Performances by troupes from around the world, Maison des Cultures du Monde, Paris, through June 17.
Festival de Saint Denis
> Music festival featuring both stars like Sir Colin Davis and young talents; ends with a dawn performance by horse whisperer Bartabas and oud player Mehdi Haddab, Cathedral and Legion of Honor, Saint Denis, through June 30.
Festival Extensions
> Concerts, dance, films and more, various locations, Paris and Val de Marne, through May 31.
Festival International des Jardins de Chaumont-sur-Loire
>"Gardens of delights, gardens of delirium" is the theme of this year's garden festival, Chaumont-sur-Loire, through Oct. 21.
Festival Jazz à Saint-Germain-des-Prés
>Jazz acts ranging from amateur to big names like Ahmad Jamal and Yusef Lateef (together). Various locations, Paris, Through June 3.
Le Court en Dit Long
>Festival of short films. Centre Wallonie-Bruxelles, Paris, June 4-9.
Nomades
>Cultural festival in the third arrondissement; art, poetry, concerts and more. Various locations, Paris, May 31-June 3.
Quinzaine des Réalisateurs
>The features and short subjects entered in this category at the Cannes Film Festival shown in Paris, Forum des Images, Paris, May 31-June 10
Salon du Vin de La Revue du Vin de France
>Annual wine fair. Palais Brongniart, Paris, June 2-3
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Year in Review
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Hot Topics
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/ Flash News
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Created on Tuesday, 04 January 2011 23:00
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Published on Tuesday, 04 January 2011 23:00
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Written by Nick Hammond
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Ricarda Merbeth as Ariadne in Ariadne auf Naxos. Photo: Julien Benhamou/Opéra National de Paris
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On the operatic front, after the production disasters of 2009, 2010 turned out to be a bumper year. From the perfectly acceptable Cunning Little Vixen (Janacek) and ...
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Ricarda Merbeth as Ariadne in Ariadne auf Naxos. Photo: Julien Benhamou/Opéra National de Paris
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On the operatic front, after the production disasters of 2009, 2010 turned out to be a bumper year. From the perfectly acceptable Cunning Little Vixen (Janacek) and Flying Dutchman (Wagner) to the sensational Billy Budd (Britten) and the (for me) unexpectedly affecting Il Trittico (Puccini), the Bastille opera house managed to maintain a consistently high standard throughout the year. At the end of the year, I appreciated the musical complexity and the colorful staging of Hindemith’s Mathis der Maler, but found its unremitting seriousness somewhat trying. Richard Strauss’s Ariadne auf Naxos, which managed to be witty and poignant in equal measure, added a glorious cherry on top of the 2010 operatic cake.
As far as movies are concerned, 2010 was less of a vintage year, but I no longer feel quite as depressed about the state of French cinema as I have been in these columns over the last few years. I appreciate that I did not manage to see the much-lauded Des Hommes et des Dieux and missed the prolific François Ozon’s Potiche, which received favorable reviews. But I enjoyed Ozon’s earlier offering Le Refuge (starring a heavily pregnant Isabelle Carré) and found much to admire in Mathieu Amalric’s uneven Tournée, for which he won the best director prize at Cannes. The subtle central performances by Gérard Depardieu and Gisèle Casadesus in La Tête en Friche made up for the outrageously over-the-top acting by the secondary characters. Two wonderfully comic movies, La Reine des Pommes and Les Invités de Mon Père, brightened up March and May for me. It was good to see a faithful adaptation of Madame de Lafayette’s novella La Princesse de Montpensier by Bertrand Tavernier and encouraging to be introduced to the directing talents of the precocious Canadian Xavier Dolan (who is only 21) in Les Amours Imaginaires. The smash box-office hit of the year, L’Arnacoeur (Heartbreaker), starring Romain Duris and Vanessa Paradis, may not have made many intellectual demands on the viewer but still managed to be comic and entertaining. As for the otherwise sparkling Le Nom des Gens, it was only its horrendous sexism that set my teeth on edge.
Art and restaurant reviews are the hallowed turf of other reviewers on this site, but let me just add that I greatly enjoyed the exhibition at the Opéra Garnier devoted to the great French soprano Régine Crespin, and I thoroughly concur with the thumbs up given to the restaurants Spring and Mini Palais. Roll on 2011 for another year of musical, cinematic and gustatory treats!
Nick Hammond
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