Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Museum of Artenay's Forain Theatre, housed in an old farm renovated in 1994 (the Paradise Farm), is dedicated to the history of travelling troops, from the commedia dell Its collections, labeled Musée de France, come from the acquisition in 1985 of the Créteur-Cavalier fonds, including 700 costumes, decorations and accessories from the 19th to 20th centuries. The museum tour, organized in six thematic rooms, explores the wandering of actors, theatre editing techniques, sets, masks of the commedia dell-arte, puppets and the disappearance of the troops in front of the cinematographer.

The museum showcases rare pieces such as a sculpted group La Parade (XIXth century), 24 eau-fortes by Jacques Callot (1621) representing the commedia dell-arte, or costumes of marquis and puppets with metamorphoses. The collections, enriched by donations and acquisitions, now have more than 2,000 objects. A showroom of 140 seats and a shop complete the offer. In 2009, the museum welcomed 10,116 visitors, highlighting its place in the regional cultural heritage.

The institution relies on an initial ethnographic collection, including a film documenting fora theatre as a major cultural phenomenon. Temporary exhibitions, such as the one dedicated to the Ferranti-Plazer Theatre or the play The Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ, illustrate the diversity of the repertoires played. The museum also maintains administrative archives (carnets, permits) and objects related to children actors, testifying to the living and working conditions of travelling troops.

La Ferme du Paradis, renovated by architects Vincen Cornu and Benoît Crépet, preserved two historic buildings: a barn and a sheepfold. This architectural setting showcases the collections, while evoking the nomadic aspect of forain theatre. The museum thus participates in the transmission of an intangible heritage, where social history, stage techniques and popular repertoires intersect, from medieval fairs to the last troops of the 1970s.

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