Leonardo da Vinci
The Original Renaissance Man
If you have not yet bought a ticket for the Leonardo da Vinci show at the Louvre, you will probably miss out on it. If you have, you are in for a treat. Although Leonardo is so familiar to us … Read More
Chang Restaurant
A Twist on Thai
You wouldn’t expect a restaurant named Chang to serve Thai food, but it does, and it is very good Thai food indeed. And it makes a nice change in Paris’s Little Tokyo (roughly the area between Opéra and the Palais … Read More
Andromaque
Back to the Roots of Racine
Jean Racine’s first major theatrical success, Andromaque, has been much on my mind in recent months, as a book of essays on the play that I co-edited was published recently. It was, therefore, a particular delight to be able to … Read More
Paris's Hôtel de Ville, where a new mayor may reign after municipal elections in late March. © Paris Update
What's Happening in Paris This Week
For full details about an event, click on the title to visit the official Web site (in English when available).
Through February 4
Winter sales
Official four-week retail sales period.
All over France
January 16
Masquerade ball
Step into nineteenth century Paris for a masked ball at the Musée d’Orsay. Cheap prices and free for EU citizens under the age of 26.
Musée d’Orsay, Paris
January 30
Help the homeless
The people of Paris come together for Nuit de la Solidarité, an annual mass operation to help those sleeping on the city’s streets. Sign-ups are available in all arrondissements.
Various locations, Paris
Through January 21
Cheap films
During the Festival Cinéma Télérama, you can see a selection of last year’s best films for only €3.50 each with the pass available in Télérama magazine or on the Télérama website. Above: Bong Joon-ho’s Oscar-nominated Parasite will be one of the films shown.
Various cinemas, all over France
January 24-February 1
Drinkathon
Paris Cocktail Week offers master classes, special restaurant menus with cocktail/food pairings and other festivities.
Various venues, Paris
Through March 1
Godard retrospective
Iconic New Wave director Jean-Luc Godard is celebrated through film screenings, discussion groups and lectures.
Cinémathèque Française, Paris
January 16–February 16
Free subtitled French films
My French Film Festival offers frees streaming of French movies.
Online
January 18
Night of reading
Author readings, retrospectives on writers and other events fill France’s libraries and bookshops for the third edition of Nuit de la Lecture.
All over France
Through January 19
Festival of lights
The ocean is the theme at this year’s edition of Espèces en Voie d’Illumination, a unique nighttime light festival.
Jardin des Plantes, Paris
January 24-March 1
Installation art
Irish artist Sam Keogh shares Knotworld, a unique exhibition about the underbelly of the city.
Centre Culturel Irlandais
Through February 2
Paul Schrader retrospective
The work of another great director, this time hailing from the New Hollywood generation, is brought to light in Dans la Tête de Paul Schrader.
Forum des Images, Paris
Through March 8
World’s Fair architecture
An exhibition at the Musée Roybet Fould, Architectures Éphémères, looks at temporary buildings created for 19th-century World’s Fairs in France.
Courbevoie, Île-de-France
Through January 25
Alfred Hitchcock retrospective
The master of suspense is celebrated in a two-month-long retrospective at the Cinémathèque Française.
Cinémathèque Française, Paris
Through February 9
Art of tomorrow, today
Performances and installations using new technology are on show at the Biennale Némo.
Various locations, Île-de-France
January 16
French film with English subtitles
Lost In Frenchlation screens J’ai Perdu Mon Corps (“I Lost my Body“), directed by Jérémy Caplin.