Gaumont Opera
2 Boulevard des Capucines,
Paris
75009
2 Boulevard des Capucines,
Paris
75009
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Built on the site of the Vaudeville Theatre, it opened in 1927 to the design of English theatre architect Frank T. Verity, who had also designed the Plaza, Lower Regent Street, London, UK for Adolph Zukor’s Paramount Pictures in 1926.
The Paramount Theatre had an original seating capacity of 1,920. It was split into seven screens during the 1970’s. The largest (Screen 3) holds 800, other screens have capacity’s ranging from 400 down to 125, 90 and 60 seats.
In 2007, the cinema underwent a renovation and was taken over by Gaumont Pathe and was renamed Gaumont Opera-Paramount Opera. Renovation of the 7-screens was completed in July 2008 and it became the Gaumont Opera Capucines.
By October 2009, it had been renamed Gaumont Opera.
Contributed by
Ken Roe
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Recent comments (view all 22 comments)
Like its namesake in New York City, the Paris Paramount had a rather narrow stage due to space restrictions of the ground site. Two magnificent ornamental fountains made of the finest French crystal graced either side of the proscenium arch. I wonder whatever became of them? The auditorium itself was also narrow, though deep, with only three sections of seats across:
www.i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/paraparis01.jpg
www.i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/paraparis02.jpg
www.i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/paraparis03.jpg
At the end of the opening night festivities, the Paramount’s symphony orchestra disappeared from view on its elevator platform while playing “The Stars and Stripes Forever”…Other Paramount-run theatres in France at this time were the Broglie-Palace in Strasbourg; Printania and Familia, Lille; Odeon, Marseille; Opera, Reims; Paris-Palace, Nice; Theatre Francais, Bordeaux; and Tivoli-Cinema, Lyon. Paramount also operated the Coliseum Theatre in Brussels, Belgium.
Here is an entire PROGRAM BOOKLET for the end of 1928, listing current and coming attractions, both films and vaudeville acts, including Maurice Chevalier.
Here’s another original program from the Paramount from March, 1928.
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Here are new links to vintage views:
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The refurbishment here is complete and all 7 screens are open…the integration with Gaumont means that big films in “Version Originale” are now opening on the neighborhood’s biggest screens…my local for nearly 2 years in Paris with among others Poseidon, The Kingdom and Rambo in French, No Country for Old Men in English, and a lot of popcorn for evenings in my office nearby…a generally higher quality of welcome and more grand experience than newer build multiplexes…lives up to its proposed grandeur
Recent photo showing Gaumont not Paramount name now on this cinema:
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When did it’s name change?
Great looking building.
An interesting article in Boxoffice of August 17, 1946, recounts some of the story of the Paramount Theatre during the occupation of Paris by the Nazis. The scan is a bit blurry, but after clicking on the magazine image to enlarge it, you can click on the + sign in the bar that appears above it to enlarge further and most of the text will be fairly readable.
Here is a clearer version of the incredible 1946 story about the Paramount during the Nazi occupation that was mentioned above by Joe Vogel: boxofficemagazine