On December 14th of last year, 800 people in Paris were excitedly waiting for a performance called Marathon!, a popular variety show featuring electronic DJs and a stunning light show.
So when it was cancelled at the last minute, the disappointment was palpable.
The lights didn’t go out, and the speakers were working just fine. Instead, the historic Gaite Lyrique theatre, close to the recently reopened Notre Dame Cathedral, had been taken over by a group of homeless West African migrants.
Some were loitering on the stage, others had settled in the rehearsal rooms and many more were simply snoozing in the corridors.
Now, more than a month later, over 300 migrants, many from countries like Ivory Coast and Guinea which were once French colonies, are residing in the theatre. They are advocating for state-provided housing as part of what they describe as an ‘anti-racist and anti-colonial’ protest.
Almost exclusively male, they claim to be unaccompanied minors and therefore entitled under French law to housing and state support. The authorities, however, believe a significant proportion to be adults. Some are already well-known to police.
Unsurprisingly, the new arrivals have caused chaos in the area, smoking marijuana in the adjoining square and using the bushes as an open-air lavatory.
No wonder, then, that local businesses have seen a devastating downturn in trade and many residents fear for their safety.
The prestigious 19th-century Gaite Lyrique theatre – a short walk from the recently reopened Notre Dame Cathedral – had been commandeered by a group of homeless West African migrants
Over a month later and over 300 migrants are now living in the historic theatre
Most of the migrants occupying the building hail from the former French colonies of Ivory Coast and Guinea
They are living in the building as part of what they’re calling an ‘anti-racist and anti-colonial struggle’ for state-sponsored housing
In a city where tensions are already strained, the Gaite Lyrique debacle threatens to sow further division between exasperated Parisians and an ever-growing yet often unassimilated migrant population.
So just how has one of the most historic cultural venues in Paris – where the light operas of Jacques Offenbach once charmed 19th-century theatregoers – been repurposed as one of the city’s largest squats?
This troubling story begins on December 10, four days before the cancelled Marathon! performance, when the theatre – which prides itself on its woke credentials and hosts a family-friendly drag show each month – presented a conference titled ‘Reinventing the welcome for refugees in France’.
The event was free to attend and featured talks from several prestigious academics, as well as officials from the Red Cross.
But alongside the usual crowd of well-heeled Paris liberals, the conference was also – and unexpectedly – attended by a small number of west African migrants, which the theatre no doubt saw as a diversity triumph. The trouble was the migrants had no intention of leaving afterwards.
It wasn’t until the day of that fateful cancelled performance, that staff at the theatre – which boasts three large auditoriums and numerous rehearsal spaces – realised some migrants had set up camp inside.
The theatre was forced to close immediately and has cancelled all performances until at least the end of this month, putting its existence as an entertainment venue at risk.
‘The loss of earnings is such that we are heading straight for bankruptcy,’ revealed Juliette Donadieu, the theatre’s beleaguered director. ‘We’re trying to maintain everything we can, to organise ourselves day by day, but we can’t perform miracles.’
Almost exclusively male, they claim to be unaccompanied minors and therefore entitled under French law to housing and state support
A man can be seen brushing his teeth with a bottle of water in the bushes outside the theatre
The authorities believe a significant proportion to be adults. Some are already well-known to police
Unsurprisingly, the new arrivals have caused chaos in the area, smoking marijuana in the adjoining square and using the bushes as an open-air lavatory
The Gaite Lyrique, now being held hostage by the very people it was trying to help, last week released another statement, stating that squatter numbers were ‘continuing to increase’ and that ‘sanitary conditions are deteriorating day after day’.
There are believed to be just three lavatories still in working order inside the theatre, which now receives almost no maintenance or cleaning.
‘Although this occupation is forced,’ the statement concluded, ‘it is unthinkable for the Gaite Lyrique to throw these people out onto the street in the middle of winter.’
Paris’s council says it has nowhere to house the migrants and has, in turn, called for help from central government.
Carine Rolland, a council member and Socialist Party culture spokesman, said: ‘A solution must be found. The government must help us in the coming days, absolutely. The survival of this place depends on it.’
She added that many billions had been spent hosting the Paris Olympics last summer, and cash ought to be found to resolve the situation with the migrants.
France’s lame duck president Emmanuel Macron has, however, refused to intervene and appears keen to steer clear of what is clearly a divisive political issue.
Intriguingly, the Daily Mail can reveal that the migrants have not been acting alone. Their occupation of the theatre appears to have been coordinated by an organisation of grassroots militant Left-wing activists calling themselves The Belleville Park Youth Collective – named after the park in the east of the city where many homeless migrants have previously set up camp.
The collective behind the occupation has taken to holding protests outside the front of the theatre every other day
The Mail witnessed one such demonstration yesterday afternoon, when 50 or so migrants stood outside the theatre
Most wearing face masks to hide their identities, beating on drums, chanting into megaphones and holding banners
A pamphlet from the protest, with the headline reading ‘a roof is a right’
Earlier this week, the Mail went inside the Gaite Lyrique and found a truly sordid scene.
Conditions are cramped and dirty with men lying side by side on the concrete floor shrouded in blankets.
The air is heavy with the smell of bodies and there is a palpable, unnerving tension. One occupant claimed there have been fights in recent weeks and even an attempted stabbing.
The theatre’s management has negotiated with the migrants to install a small number of security guards who conduct bag searches as the occupiers re-enter the building to ensure they do not have illicit substances.
Moussa (not his real name) says he is from Guinea and claims to be 15 years old. ‘The beds are not great, and we do not get much privacy, but we keep warm and can cook meals,’ he says. ‘We are all minors and have an absolute legal right to a home of our own.’
When the Mail suggested to Moussa that he appeared to be significantly older than 15, the situation quickly escalated. A woman claiming to be a volunteer for the ‘collective’ made her anger known and insisted we left.
‘This is typical of the way migrants are treated in France,’ she said, angrily. ‘They get nothing but disrespect.’
It’s abundantly clear, however, that not everyone shares her view.
Local businesses have seen a devastating downturn in trade and many residents fear for their safety
Police monitored the crowd from the safety of three large vans parked 20 yards away
In a city where tensions are already strained, the Gaite Lyrique debacle threatens to sow further division between exasperated Parisians and an ever-growing yet often unassimilated migrant population
Next door to the theatre stands the Bistrot de la Gaite, a restaurant and cafe that is haemorrhaging customers thanks to its new neighbours.
Its 38-year-old manager Elia, who did not wish to us to use her surname, said the bistro had lost about 80 per cent of its income.
‘It’s been a disaster,’ Elia revealed, before describing a fight in which one migrant had lunged at another with a pair of scissors.
‘People are afraid to come here. They’ve taken over the park in the square, sitting around smoking dope. Children don’t use the playground any more, and women are scared.’
Elia comes from an immigrant background herself, and supports fair treatment for refugees, but said the situation on their doorstep was ‘out of control’.
The collective behind the occupation has taken to holding protests outside the front of the theatre every other day.
The Mail witnessed one such demonstration yesterday afternoon, when 50 or so migrants stood outside the theatre – most wearing face masks to hide their identities – beating on drums, chanting into megaphones and holding banners. These proclaimed: ‘We’re all equal, not illegal’ and ‘A roof is a right’.
Police monitored the crowd from the safety of three large vans parked 20 yards away.
The theatre was forced to close after migrants set up camp inside and has cancelled all performances until at least the end of this month, putting its existence as an entertainment venue at risk
The Gaite Lyrique, now being held hostage by the very people it was trying to help, last week released another statement, stating that squatter numbers were ‘continuing to increase’ and that ‘sanitary conditions are deteriorating day after day’
There are believed to be just three lavatories still in working order inside the theatre, which now receives almost no maintenance or cleaning
Paris’s council says it has nowhere to house the migrants and has, in turn, called for help from central government
On the other side of the square, opposite the theatre, stands the Solly Hotel. Open for just 18 months, its emerging reputation as a charming boutique hotel is now in jeopardy.
‘It’s a little unsettling for this normally calm neighbourhood, especially when there are protests,’ admitted Victoria, a receptionist in her 40s.
‘The noise of the drums is so loud. Our customers come down and ask us, “What is going on out there?”’
‘Some of our guests are scared,’ said a second receptionist, who asked to remain anonymous. ‘They’re not necessarily used to seeing this sort of thing.
‘They want to be reassured that they’re safe.’
But Victoria isn’t sure if they are. Visibly upset, she told the Mail that she had been followed coming out of the metro on her way to work by men who appeared to be staying at the Gaite Lyrique.
And on two separate occasions, men who appeared homeless entered the hotel.
One stole a croissant and a cup of coffee from the breakfast buffet while the other began walking upstairs before being stopped by hotel staff.
The occupation of the theatre appears to have been coordinated by an organisation of grassroots militant Left-wing activists calling themselves The Belleville Park Youth Collective
Conditions inside the theatre are cramped and dirty with men lying side by side on the concrete floor shrouded in blankets
Inside the air is heavy with the smell of bodies and there is a palpable, unnerving tension. One occupant claimed there have been fights in recent weeks and even an attempted stabbing
The theatre’s management has negotiated with the migrants to install a small number of security guards who conduct bag searches as the occupiers re-enter the building to ensure they do not have illicit substances
‘I don’t know if we can say this situation isn’t dangerous,’ Victoria concluded. ‘These men are in a desperate situation. When you don’t have enough money and resources, it can cause aggression.
‘It’s not about racism. It’s a matter of: what will these men do to survive?’
And it’s not just businesses that are worried. The theatre is surrounded by multi-million-pound apartments where residents are simply furious.
One 63-year-old financial services manager, who wished to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals, said: ‘We’ve all worked very hard to build up our lives in an expensive area of Paris, and give back with our taxes and charity work.
‘But others expect to be able to come in and make a mess of the whole place. It is an absolute scandal.’
The chaotic scenes unfolding within and around the Gaite Lyrique are certainly not without precedent in the City of Light.
Last year, 230 squatters occupying a cultural centre in the west of Paris were relocated to public gymnasiums after three months.
However, as many of these were never given permanent housing, they are believed to make up a large proportion of the current Gaite Lyrique community.
The theatre is surrounded by multi-million-pound apartments where residents are simply furious
The chaotic scenes unfolding within and around the Gaite Lyrique are certainly not without precedent in the City of Light
Ultimately, the extraordinary fate of the Gaite Lyrique shines a shocking light on the extent of France’s migrant crisis
Yann Manzi, the co-founder of refugee aid group Utopia, believes the government simply isn’t doing enough. There are ‘millions of square metres available’ to house France’s homeless migrant population, he argues.
But there remains a lack of political will to address the situation. ‘It’s not that France can’t house these people,’ he says. ‘It’s that it doesn’t want to.’
Ultimately, the extraordinary fate of the Gaite Lyrique shines a shocking light on the extent of France’s migrant crisis.
Some seven million, more than 10 per cent of the population, is foreign born.
Meanwhile, in 2023 alone, France received 142,649 asylum applications, an 8.7 per cent increase on the previous year. And the country is home to an estimated 300,000 to 400,000 undocumented people.
The French Inequality Observatory estimates that roughly 300,000 people are without housing in France, with up to 12,000 sleeping rough.
A significant proportion of these are immigrants.
Behind the fiasco at the Gaite Lyrique lies a story familiar both in France and across the European continent.
How long before the upsetting scenes at the theatre are replicated closer to home, not in Paris but on this side of the English Channel?
Additional reporting: Peter Allen
