A new city that never sleeps?
01.09.2006, 10:20
From ogling at a speed-skating display at the Louvre to devouring an edible sculpture made of candy, some 1.5 million people reveled in a Paris celebration that illuminated the City of Light all night, municipal officials said Sunday.
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The fifth edition of the annual "Nuit Blanche" — or "Sleepless Night" — featured a dizzying array of artistic exhibitions and music concerts across Paris Saturday night to Sunday morning. The Place de la Concorde was showered in blue light, films were projected on building facades, and drag queens on stage belted out rock 'n' roll covers.
One hiccup came as revelers ate away a sculpture made of thousands of pieces of wrapped candy at the Grand Palais museum a bit too early, leading security teams to shut the exhibit before midnight.
Sport became art at the Louvre Museum, where speed skaters whizzed around an ice track on an outdoor esplanade. The celebration also reached Versailles Palace southeast of Paris, where sculpture dragons spewed fire in a fountain instead of water.
More than 1.5 million people took part in the free event, said Christophe Girard, an assistant mayor in charge of cultural affairs.
As in past years, more than 2,000 bicycles and service on buses, subways, and commuter trains were made available free for the night. Some 230 artists were involved in scores of shows spread across many pockets of entertainment and art around the city.
"Nuit Blanche" is the brainchild of Mayor Bertrand Delanoe, known for his entertainment initiatives, including turning part of a bank of the Seine into a beach over the summer.