Shows at the Palace of Versailles
Fireworks displays, fountains...: the Palace of Versailles has something exciting for visitors all summer long.
The summer programme at the Versailles Estate is packed with great events! Festive entertainment, music and exceptional evening events are happening all summer, and right up to 31st October 2017. Visitors can attend the ‘Musical Fountains Show’, the ‘Fountains Night Show’... , discover the ‘Royal Voices’ or take part in a Masked Ball … All the details on not-to-be-missed festivities!
Les Grandes Eaux musicales (Musical Fountains Show)
From 1 April to 29 October 2017 - Saturday and Sunday; From 23 May to 27 June - Tuesday; 14 April, 25 May, 14 July and 15 August 2017
The Musical Fountains Show invites visitors to stroll through the gardens of Versailles that the Sun King was so fond of. An invigorating walk past ornamental ponds and fountains, which for a few hours regain all the past glory and splendour of the court of Louis XIV, thanks to the expertise of water-fountain engineers. Waterfalls, jets and sprays of water spring forth in a crystal clear aquatic dance to the sound of music by Lully.
- Opening of the groves: from 9am to 7pm
- Music from 10am to 7pm
- Water effects (week-end) 11am to 12-noon and from 3.30pm to 5pm. Tuesday: 11am to 12-noon and from 2.30pm to 4pm
- Water effects at the Mirror Fountain every 10 minutes, from 10am to 7pm
- Water display in the Water Theatre Grove: every 15 minutes from 10am to 7pm
- Water effects at the Neptune Fountain: at 5.20pm except Tuesday
Rate: €9,5. Reduced rate: €8. Free for children aged under 6.
More info on the Musical Fountains Show
Les Grandes Eaux Nocturnes (Fountains Night Show)
From 17 June to 16 September 2017 - Saturday
At dusk, the Fountains Night Show unveils the charm of the gardens of Versailles … Lighting and stage effects artists, musicians and a group of fireworks experts, the ‘Groupe F’, create a stunning ephemeral itinerary of visual, sound and aquatic installations with a fireworks finale under the starry sky of the Versailles Estate, to the sound of baroque music.
- Itinerary: from 8.30pm to 11.05pm.
- Fireworks finale in front of the Grand Canal: from 10.50 to 11.05pm
Rate: €26. Reduced rate: €22. Free for children aged under 6
More info on the Fountains Night Show
Royal serenade in the Hall of Mirrors
From 17 June to 16 September 2017 - Saturday
Just before The Fountains Night Show, dancers from the company L’Eventail and musicians from Les Folies Françoises invite visitors to accompany them from the Royal Apartments to the famous Hall of Mirrors. A circuit punctuated with theatre sketches portraying the customs and habits of the court in the 17th century.
- Performances lasting 40 minutes: at 6.30pm, 6.50pm, 7.10pm, 7.30pm and 7.50pm
Rate: €24. Reduced rate: €21. Free for children aged under 6.
Serenade + Grandes Eaux Nocturnes: €42. Reduced rate: €35. Free for children aged under 6.
New: Serenade + Grandes Eaux Musicales: €28. Reduced rate: €24. Free for children aged under 6.
The Musical Gardens
From 31 March to 27 October - Friday (except 14 July); from 4 April to 16 May and from 4 July to 31 October 2017 - Tuesday
The Musical Gardens event invites visitors to discover preserved areas of the Versailles Estate, with its French-style formal garden designed by the landscape architect André Le Nôtre. A chance to discover groves and other features: sculpture, architecture, fountains … on a musical promenade.
- Opening of the groves: from 9am to 7pm
- Music from 10am to 7pm
- Water effects at the Mirror Fountain every 10 minutes, from 10am to 7pm
- Water display in the Water Theatre Grove: every 15 minutes from 10am to 7pm
Rate: €8,5. Reduce rate: €7,5. Free for children aged under 6.
Royal Voices
From 19 May to 8 July 2017
Summer at Versailles gets underway with a series of concerts and operas, most of which were composed during the reign of Louis XIV. Some especially beautiful pieces will be performed at the Royal Chapel or at the mythical Royal Opera, including Médée by Marc-Antoine Charpentier, an opera by Vivaldi and Mozart’s Requiem.
| Médée, opera By Marc-Antoine Charpentier (1643-1704) Conductors Gaétan Jarry, David Fallis 19 May – 8pm 20 May – 7pm 21 May – 3pm Opéra Royal | Harmonia Sacra, concert and dances By Henry Purcell (1659-1695) Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra. Conductor David Fallis 20 May – 3pm Chapelle Royale |
| Majesté, concert By Michel-Richard de Lalande (1657-1726) Le Poème harmonique - Ensemble Aedes. Conductor Vincent Dumestre 30 and 31 May – 8pm Chapelle Royale | Alcione, opera By Marin Marais (1656-1728) Concert des Nations choir and orchestra Conductor Jordi Savali 8 June – 8pm 10 June – 7pm 11 June – 3pm Opéra Royal |
| Vespro della Beata Vergine, concert By Claudio Monteverdi (1567-1643) Pygmalion. Conductor Raphaël Pichon 10 June – 8pm 11 June – 6pm Chapelle Royale | Stabat Mater & Nisi Dominus, concert By Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741) Ensemble Matheus. Conductor Jean-Christophe Spinosi With David DQ Lee (countertenor) and Filippo Mineccia (countertenor) 16 June – 8pm Chapelle Royale |
| Requiem & Coronation Mass, concert By Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) Ensemble Matheus. Conductor Jean-Christophe Spinosi 18 June – 4pm and 8pm Chapelle Royale | Marc Mauillon, Songline Solo recital Works by Blanche de Castille, Bernard de Ventadour, Guillaume de Machaut, Jehan de Lescurel... 18 June – 6.30pm 8 July 7.30pm Secret place |
| Arsilda, Regina di Ponto, opera By Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741) Collegium 1704 choir and orchestra Conductor Václav Luks 23 June – 8pm 25 June – 3pm Opéra Royal | Orchestral suites, concert By Johann Sebatian Bach (1685-1750) The King's Consort. Conductor Robert King 27 June – 8pm Opéra Royal |
| Great Motets, concert By Michel-Richard de Lalande (1657-1726) With singers from the Baroque Music Center of Versailles Conductor Olivier Schneebell 7 July – 8pm Chapelle Royale | |
Rates: from €25 to €150. Reduced rates: from €20 to €115.
The Orangery Nights
From 30 June to 14 July 2017
At sunset, the garden of the Orangery become the setting for big outdoor performances, which combine music, ballet and fireworks that echo back to the lavish festivities of the Sun King
| Haendel : Music for the Royal Fireworks Conductor Hervé Niquet Fireworks Groupe F 30 June – 9pm Orangery garden | Louis XV, le Roi de Feu (Louis XIV, the Fire King) A fireworks display orchestrated by Groupe F 6, 7, 12 and 14 July – 10pm Orangery garden |
Rates: from €35 to €110. Group rates: from €32 to €75. Château de Versailles spectacles card rates: from €32 to €100. Under 26 year olds rates: from €25 to €70.
Court costumes
From 29 May to 24 June 2017
What could be more exciting than becoming a courtier for a night? On May 29th, the Palace of Versailles organizes its Fêtes Galantes, an entertaining evening of demonstrations, baroque dance classes and a ball, with everyone dressed up in period costume or in accordance with the theme for 2017 ‘the official Reception of the Tsar Peter the Great’. For the most enthusiastic, a grand masked ball takes place on 24 June, from 11.30pm until early the following morning!
| Fêtes Galantes Baroque evening in costumes of the period in the Hall of Mirrors 29 May – 7.30pm Grands et Petits Appartements, Chapelle Royale, Galerie des Glaces | The Grand Masked Ball of Versailles Masked and costumed ball 24 June – 11.30pm Orangery |
> Fêtes Galantes: Rates: from €150 to €410. Group rates: from €135 to €260. Château de Versailles spectacles card rates: from €135 to €370. Under 26 year olds rates: from €135 to €260.
> The Grand Masked Ball of Versailles: Rates: from €98 to €330. Group rates: from €88 to €173. Château de Versailles spectacles card rates: from €88 to €310. Under 26 year olds rates: from €88 to €173.
Gala evenings
From 12 June to 9 July 2017
Gala evenings are the best way to relive the cultural splendour of the Palace of Versailles: On July 1st and 2nd, the Petit Théâtre de la Reine at the Petit Trianon is staging L’Opéra de la Reine: The Village Soothsayer, an opera by Jean-Jacques Rousseau in which Marie-Antoinette played, in 1780, in front of an audience of close friends; at the Royal Festivals in the Marble Courtyard, an outdoor show glorifies the Arts, which were so beloved by Louis XIV; finally, on June 12th, the great mezzo-soprano Cécilia Bartoli takes the public through four centuries of Italian music.
| Cécilia Bartoli, Voyage italien (Italian Journey), concert Cécilia Bartoli (mezzo-soprano), Sergio Clomel (piano) Works by Vivaldi, Caldara, Scarlatti, Rossini, Puccini... 12 June – 8pm Opéra Royal | L’Opéra de la Reine: The Village Soothsayer, opera Les Nouveaux Caractères. Conductor Sébastien d'Hérin 1 and 2 July – 8pm Petit Théâtre de la Reine du Petit Trianon |
| Royal Festivals at the Marble Courtyard, opera By Marc-Antoine Charpentier, "Les arts florissants" (1685) Ensemble Marguerite Louise. Conductor Gaétan Jarry 9 July – 7.30pm Marble Courtyard | |
> Cécilia Bartoli, Voyage italien: Rates: from €85 to €395. Reduced rates: from €72 to 220€.
> L’Opéra de la Reine: The Village Soothsayer: Rates: €348
> Royal Festivals at the Marble Courtyard: Rates: from €198 to €298
