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Origin and history

La Halle-au-blé de La Flèche, located in the Sarthe department, finds its origins in the Middle Ages with wooden halls. In 1737, Marie de Tesse, Countess of the Luzerne, had the stone building rebuilt to install a hall, a town hall and a theatre. The works are led by architect René Lespine. Around 1772, Mayor Pierre de la Rue du Can ordered the reconstruction of the adjacent town hall, entrusting the plans to Prosper Simon, architect of the College.

In 1827, extension and restoration work was carried out by Pierre-Félix Delarue, adding a theatre to Italian in the southern wing. This theatre, decorated by Adrien-Louis Lusson, becomes an emblematic cultural place. The town hall left in 1910 to settle at the Château des Carmes, but the hall remained an active public space, home to a covered market and theatre performances.

The building, which was listed as a historical monument in 1987, is characterized by its U-style architecture, its arches in the middle of the city and its croup roofs. The theatre, nicknamed "la bonbonnière", was restored several times, notably in 1989 and 1999. It has 135 seats and retains 19th-century decors, including a false dome painted by Lusson and his students. The hall, still active, symbolizes the urban and cultural evolution of La Flèche.

In 1839, the north wing was redesigned and the southern wing rebuilt under the direction of Delarue and the municipal architect Poreaux. The carved decoration of the central pediment dates from this period. A savings bank was established there in 1869. After decades of varied use, the theatre reopened in 1963 thanks to a local company and was completely restored in 1999, regaining its brilliance.

The Halle Mairie illustrates the adaptation of public buildings to the changing needs of the city, combining market, administrative and cultural functions. Its theatre, with its decorated dressing rooms and its elliptical dome, remains a rare testimony of 19th-century provincial theatre architecture.

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