The legendary Folies Bergère lives (right here). What a history it had (see here). The Folies Bergère was founded in Paris in 1869 as a music hall and revolutionized the “music hall revue.” It was at the height of its fame from the 1890s through the 1920s. It attracted the attention of the great French artists and poster designers of the age, including Edouard Manet, Toulouse-Lautrec, Jules Cheret, and more, who painted pictures and designed posters of its stars. It was the home for Josephine Baker’s storied Danse Sauvage, the launchpad for French stars including Maurice Chevalier, Mistinguett, Fernandel, and was the haute of popular entertainment in Paris during that heyday.
This Folies program from the late 1920s reveals how haute in the mass-market sense it was. The ads run the gamut from beauty to pianos. The art deco aesthetic is in full flower, from the illustration and typography to the hair styles of the performers. Even with the interior printed black and white, elegance shines through. For a virtual thrill, stare at the vibrating type on the advert for Valenti ( at the bottom of this post).
ère #StevenHeller