Structural problems in the velodrome 1959 (≈ 1959)
Start of reports on the condition of the winter velodrome.
1961
Municipal decision
Municipal decision 1961 (≈ 1961)
Choosing to rebuild an omnisport hall on Plain Achille.
1966
Approval of the preliminary draft
Approval of the preliminary draft 1966 (≈ 1966)
Validation of Pierre Dufau's project.
octobre 1967
Award of contracts
Award of contracts octobre 1967 (≈ 1967)
Start of work, including the installation of the dome.
2025
Monument protection
Monument protection 2025 (≈ 2025)
Registration of the "geod" in Historical Monuments.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
The Palais des spectacles for the whole "geod" part and all the elements that make up it, located plain Achilles, 31-35 Jules Janin Boulevard, on Parcel No. 304, in the cadastre section CL: inscription by order of 21 January 2025
Key figures
Pierre Dufau - Architect
Designer of the Palace, Grand Prix of Rome.
Walther Bauersfeld - German engineer
Inventor of geodetic domes (patent 1922).
Buckminster Fuller - Architect and inventor
Associated with the development of post-Second War domes.
Origin and history
The Palais des spectacles, located in Saint-Étienne, is an emblematic monument of the 3rd quarter of the 20th century, characterized by its 61-metre diameter metal dome weighing nearly 45 tons. This geodetic dome, inspired by the designs of Walther Bauersfeld, a German engineer pioneer of spherical structures, houses steps squared around a central pit. The building, supplemented by a rectangular body housing offices and technical rooms, has undergone numerous modifications in its lower parts and installations.
Originally, the project arose from the need to replace the Saint-Étienne winter velodrome, which had been found to be structurally failing since 1959. In 1961, the municipality decided to build an omnisports hall on a communal land of Plaine Achille. The architect Pierre Dufau, Grand Prix de Rome and designer of the Palais des sports de Paris, is responsible for the project. The preliminary draft was approved in 1966, and contracts were awarded in October 1967, including the dome contract to the Compagnie Française d'Entreprises Métalliques, already involved in the Palais des sports de Paris.
The geodetic domes, popularized in the 1950s-1960s for their futuristic aesthetics, originated in the work of Walther Bauersfeld, an engineer at Carl Zeiss. His 1922 patent, originally designed for planetariums, was reappropriated after World War II by the Americans via Buckminster Fuller. This type of structure, combining lightness and resistance, experienced a commercial boom in modern architecture, symbolizing technical innovation and progress.
Today, the Palais des spectacles, protected for its "geod" part since 2025, is a major architectural testimony of this time. Labelled "Remarkable Contemporary Architecture", it illustrates the transition from sports buildings to versatile cultural spaces, while embodying the constructive daring of the Thirty Gloryes.
