C.I.C.T. – Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord
Company
The C.I.C.T. – Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord was built as a venue for the Caf’Conc popular song repertory in 1876 in Paris. Mainly, the building served as a music hall show or a humorous theatre. In 1974, Peter Brook and Micheline Rozan, the founders of the International Centre for Theatre Research in Paris remembered the dilapidated building that housed the C.I.C.T. – Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord. Thanks to financial help from the Festival d’Automne (the Autumn Festival) they renovated the theatre in a remarkably intelligent and tasteful manner. The C.I.C.T. – Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord re-opened with Timon of Athens, adapted by Jean-Claude Carrière and directed by Peter Brook. Since then every new staging has had best and most enthusiastic audiences.
‘Micheline and I decided upon a policy: the theatre should be simple, open and welcoming. There should be no numbered seats and a single ticket price, this price should be a low as possible, half or a quarter of that the prices in the theatre district. Our aim was to make the theatre accessible […]. We also made the decision to take the liberty of closing the theatre when we wanted, or to offer free productions at Christmas or Easter to neighbourhood residents.’ Peter Brook
