L’Arche d’or: Christmas equestrian show at the Château de Chantilly

From November 29, 2025, to January 4, 2026,the Grandes Écuries du Château de Chantilly will present L'Arche d'Or, a new creation by Virginie Bienaimé for the Compagnie Équestre. Conceived as a Christmas tale combining poetry and adventure, the show follows in the footsteps of Éloi, a young, dreamy blacksmith who sets off in search of a fabulous treasure. His quest takes him to meet a tyrannical queen, chatty princesses, deceitful mirrors, and bewitching mirror women, while Grillon, a mischievous spirit, watches over him. This fable highlights a hero confronted with his illusions and desires, until he comes to understand that the most precious thing may not be what he thought it was.

Virginie Bienaimé's staging features fourteen equestrian scenes in the dome of the Grandes Écuries, transformed for the occasion into a dreamlike world. She draws her inspiration from the literary imagination of initiatory tales, with echoes of The Little Prince and Pinocchio, and from an aesthetic reminiscent of the world of Tim Burton. Sophie Bienaimé's equestrian and artistic direction coordinates riders, acrobats, and actors in a series of scenes where jockey vaulting, haute école, and dressage figures accompany the stages of Éloi's journey. Costumes created by Monika Mucha, lighting by Thomas Jacquemart, and original music contribute to the creation of this magical atmosphere.

The cast includes an actor, two acrobats, and the troupe's riders: Sophie Bienaimé, Jade Chaudin, Lisa Courtaud, Clémentine Marguerat, Mathilde Pouteau, Amélie Schoeller, Laurie Trouvain, and Clémentine Viret. The scenes feature around thirty horses of various breeds—Spanish, Portuguese, Arabian, Boulonnais, Percheron, Shetland, and even mini-Shetland—as well as donkeys, allowing for a variety of acts adapted to each horse's morphology and equestrian specialty. This rich animal collection is in keeping with the tradition of the Living Horse Museum, founded in 1982, which promotes traditional French equestrian art. 

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L'Arche d'Or is part of the Château de Chantilly's winter program, which each year offers a family show combining equestrian arts and theatrical staging. Using vaulting, dressage, and storytelling, this creation aims to introduce the public to a magical world while perpetuating the excellence of the Equestrian Company. The show is aimed at visitors of all ages and contributes to the cultural dynamic of a renowned heritage site, offering an artistic experience that combines emotion, technical skill, and the magic of Christmas.

L'Arche d'Or can be seen at the Château de Chantilly until January 4, 2026.

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