About one year ago, the Paris Opera opened its doors to the publishing house ‘Editions de La Martinière’ for a special documentary taking us closer to the craft and mystery of creation. The result gives a unique perspective at a performance backstage and crew.

From the Palais Garnier to the Bastille Opera, journalist Laetitia Cénac and illustrator Laure Fissore have slipped behind the stage curtain to capture behind-the-scenes moments of these legendary venues.

They tell us how more than 1,500 people -dancers, musicians, singers, Chorus artists, technicians, designers, costume makers…- handle more than 400 performances each year. But also how committed teams keep a unique craft alive and pass it on to future generations.

Both an investigation and a documentary, they published a resolutely modern, contemporary, on-the-spot report, with many references to the exceptional history of this French institution. 

Laetitia Cénac is a journalist for Madame Figaro, in the culture section, and writes about contemporary art, theatre, fashion and lifestyle. She is also a member of the jury for the Beaumarché Award, which gathers the theatre critics of the Figaro Group. A regular feature writer, she has published Marguerite Duras, L'écriture de la passion (2013), Dans les coulisses de la Comédie-Française (2016) and Dans les coulisses de Chanel (2019) with the publishing house Les Éditions de La Martinière.

Laure Fissore dedicated her diploma from the ‘Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs’ to dance, an artistic expression which fascinates her. In 2012 she went to study in Hangzhou, China, where she discovered the techniques of woodcuts and using Chinese paper. In 2009, she won the first prize of Liberation’s travelogues competition. Her work is regularly published (Le Monde, Feuilleton...) and exhibited in Paris and Monaco.