On the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the label «Scène nationale» awarded by the Ministry of Culture, the 77 stages holding this label gathered on October 27 in the presence of Rima Abdul Malak, Minister of Culture.
From Albi to Villeneuve d'Asq, including Belfort, Chambéry, Châteauroux, Dieppe, Douai, Niort, Le Creusot, Martigues, Narbonne, Toulon and Reims, not forgetting Fort-de-France and Basse-Terre, they constitute a multidisciplinary network of creation and dissemination with an exceptional network whose strength lies in the multiplicity of their location and in the artistic and cultural vitality that greatly irrigates the metropolitan territory and the overseas territories.with the indispensable support of local authorities.
« Emblematic of France’s cultural DNA », according to Rima Abdul Malak, Minister of Culture, the seventy-seven National scenesSince December 16, 2021, the anniversary year of the label created by the Ministry of Culture in 1991, the Department of Culture has been celebrating a tremendous cultural boost across the country.
A unique opportunity to revisit these structures, one of the main missions of which is to produce and disseminate original creations in the field of live entertainment, of course, but also, for those with adequate equipment, in the fields of film and visual arts. The exemplarity of the National Stages also lies in their work of accompaniment and support of the artists with whom they imagine and build new relations with the inhabitants to bring them to be «spec'actors» in all the territories, whether they are rural or urban.
«A utopia become reality»
« A utopia turned into reality This is how the Minister of Culture returned to the press kit published by the Association des scènes nationales on the occasion of this anniversary, on the legacy of the National Scenes. A legacy that comes straight from the decentralization of theatre, the Maisons de la culture – many of them today under the label “Scènes nationales” – and the creation of the Ministry of Culture. « This utopia, did she assure, it is about sharing culture with everyone, in places where “people meet to meet the best in them,” as André Malraux said. ».
A ' utopia » claimed by Hortense Archambault, director of the MC93, Maison de la Culture de Seine-Saint-Denis in Bobigny. " Our role is essential to tirelessly build relationships and to strive for fewer stories to be told, including those of the invisible. ,” she explains, recalling that the National Scenes, this French specificity », « aspire to be places of common manufacture in a fragmented society, to be places of refuge for artists to create, places of thought, emotions and discoveries for all, moving away from the increasingly pervasive logic of cultural consumption on daily screens ».
The conviction of the usefulness of our missions, of a public service of culture, everywhere and by all, is reinforced
Prospects for the future
And today, what remains of this legacy, after the health crisis, and in the face of the digital revolution, the ecological emergency, the geopolitical and energy crisis and the strong expectations of our fellow citizens regarding parity and diversity? « Thirty years later, this ideal remains intact said Rima Abdul Malak. Faced with the many challenges The Minister of Culture is convinced that the National Scenes will be able to reinvent oneself » and « redefine their role in a changing world ". " These challenges lead you to experiment with new practices, new ways of working, to forge new alliances ", she said.
« The network has shown in the crisis we have just been through, its solidarity, its ability to find new methods of action, approved Hortense Archambault. Put to the test, the conviction in the usefulness of our missions, those of a public service of art and culture, everywhere and by everyone, is strengthened "However," she continued, " the multiplicity of national scenes is a strength of the network, which is a veritable melting pot of resources and various expertise For the Minister of Culture, one thing is certain: the network of National Stages has all the assets to contribute to the construction of desirable futures and respond to contemporary challenges in a changing world. In this, they are an indispensable link in public cultural policies ».
National scenes, history of a cultural utopia
On the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the National Stages, celebrated from December 1, 2021 to November 30, 2022 in the 77 National Stages located in mainland France and overseas, the Association des Scènes nationales commissioned Antoine de Baecque, historian and critic of cinema and theatre, a text on the history of this emblematic network of cultural decentralization and officially created in a letter from Bernard Faivre d'Arcier, at the time director of theatre and shows at the Ministry of Culture, 16 December 1991. Result: an exciting story published online, in which the historian retraces the gesture of these places of creation.