The Musée d’Orsay shifts from canvas to prose. For the first time, the institution teams up with the Comédie-Française to let the 19th century speak as vividly as it is visible in its collections. The guiding idea of this collaboration? Place the actors of the Français in charge of the letters, the characters, and the stories of an era at the museum’s core, with the piano as a playing partner.
This five-part series comprises two distinct projects. The first pays tribute to Claude Monet on the centenary of his death. The second brings Émile Zola into the spotlight with a four-episode reading of Nana. The actresses will carry the novel from one session to the next, in the spirit of the nineteenth-century literary serial.
Monet in Verbatim…
Saturday, October 10, 2026 at 7:00 PM
Auditorium of the Musée d’Orsay
Actor Didier Sandre, a member of the Comédie-Française, lends his voice to Claude Monet and several of his contemporaries, with piano accompaniment by . Held to mark the centenary of the painter’s death, this evening also accompanies the release of Monet’s Letters, published by Thames & Hudson in October 2026.
Beneath the landscapes and the play of light, a more intimate Monet emerges. His writings reveal his work, his passions, his anxieties, and his viewpoints, while the voices of his contemporaries place the painter within a vibrant artistic era in motion.
In January, Zola takes the stage. Four actresses from the Comédie-Française, always accompanied at the piano by Claire-Marie Le Guay, will bring Émile Zola’s work to life in the form of a true serialized drama. Just like in the 19th century, each performance will pick up the narrative where the previous one left off, inviting audiences to return to discover the rest of the story.
Bringing together the museum’s collections, the texts that defined their era, and the actors of the Comédie-Française, this program offers a fresh way to explore the 19th century. An invitation to listen to the artists as much as to behold them, and to rediscover two major figures of the period from a vividly alive perspective.
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Dates and Opening Time
From October 10, 2026 to February 4, 2027
Location
Musée d'Orsay Auditorium
Porte C
75007 Paris 7
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Accessibility info
Prices
Tarif -12 ans: €8
Tarif Jeunes (12-25 ans): €11
Tarif adulte: €28
Booking
www.musee-orsay.fr
