Théâtre de l'Œuvre

The Théâtre de l'Œuvre wears a simple, yellow facade on the Rue de Clichy. Lugné-Poë founded it in eighteen ninety-three to reject the elaborate, realistic sets popular in Paris at the time. He wanted plays that lived in the mind, relying on shadows and empty space. When Alfred Jarry staged Ubu Roi here in eighteen ninety-six, the play opened with a character shouting a curse that caused a near riot in the audience. The theater became a home for writers who broke every rule.