Theatre Ranelagh, Paris

Le Ranelagh Theatre, in the sixteenth arrondissement, is one of the oldest theatres in Paris. It was built in 1755 as an annex to a castle during the reign of King Louis XV.

Voltaire and Rousseau have performed there. It was abandoned after the French Revolution, but became popular again from 1895. It now has a new music room in Renaissance style with mouldings, columns, and boxes, designed by architect Alban Chambon at the request of the owner Louis Mors. The architect's legacy is the inscription on the door of the theatre: "For me and my friends."

The 300-room theatre was listed as a Historical Monument in 1977.

One room of the theatre has been a cinema since 1931.

MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of: Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

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