The Folies Bergère first opened on May 1 in 1869 and hosted operetta and pantomime.[1] The Folies opened not far from the heart of the post-Haussmann cultural center of Paris and just south of the iconic Montmartre district which would become an artistic center in Paris.[2] The Folies was not immediately popular for its content and shows. In the 1870s the Folies shifted to vaudeville at which point its popularity grew as it began to develop as a center of nightlife in Paris.[3] In 1871 the theater was taken over by Leon Sari who began remodeling the auditorium, putting in the famous promenade and garden with central fountain.[4] The public was allowed to drink in the theaters indoor garden and in the promenade area making the Folies a popular attraction for Parisians looking to relax and enjoy the nightlife of Paris' growing theatrical scene.[5] When the vogue of nudity became popular in 1894 it seized the music halls of Paris and the Folies established itself as the quintessential hotspot of Paris' nightlife.[6] It was, however, under Paul Derval's management from 1918 to 1966 that the Folies gained an international reputation.[7] The popularity of the grandiose spectacles and near nude women put on by Derval found their popularity in the 20^th century making the Folies an international icon for nightlife and theater.[8,9] Artists, in particular, were drawn to the theater because it was a place where "strict bourgeois morality held no sway whatsoever" and those that ventured to the Folies could break free of social norms.[10] With the introduction of Jazz into Paris and Parisian culture, the Folies became a focal point for Jazz drawing in musicians and singers from all around the world. One such musician was Josephine Baker, an African American jazz singer that made her debut at the Folies in 1926 and went on to establish herself as a leading name in Jazz.[11]

Jazz really began in Paris in 1918 during the First World War when a group of African American army musicians made a big hit in Paris while they were on tour.[12] WWI brought African American music to Europe along with troops and created an atmosphere where jazz would be able to flourish in a way that it could not in the United States. African American musicians were able to leave behind a life of injustices that they were awarded in the United States and jazz musicians as a whole were respected for their art before it was even acknowledged as an art in the United States.[13] Although jazz in Paris developed during the First World War when men on the frontline would take leave and participate in the entertainment of music halls that the city had to offer it truly entered its golden age during the interwar years.[14,15] After the war there was a sizeable African American population that stayed in Paris as more continued to immigrate to the city.[16] This Black community was located overwhelmingly in a small section of Paris in the lower Montmartre district by the north end of the ninth arrondissement.[17] The curtailing of music halls during WWI created a burst in the entertainment industry immediately following and stretching into the interwar years.[18] The decline of the cabaret and rise of the music hall in 1900 created a shift to the nightclub scene which was a draw for African American artists and created an atmosphere for entertainment around small venues compared to the larger ones of the turn of the century.[19] Jazz first gained its popularity in these nightclubs and music halls as the rhythmically driven music created excitement among the Parisians.[20] Jazz became a popular draw for Parisians seeking entertainment, thrills and looking to mingle with a racier lifestyle, that of African American culture. Descriptions of jazz reflected a widespread sense of wonder and arousal surrounding jazz, "European music had always had rhythm, but never had it been so pronounced."[21] Jazz clubs brought music and entertainment out of the Montmartre and Montparnasse districts and into the greater area of Paris making it more accessible to the public.[22] Most musicians that played music halls were white whereas the musicians of the smaller jazz clubs were African American.[23] Even though there was white presence in jazz music most white musicians recognized the debt they owed to African American musicians.[24] Jazz was known as "musique nègre" and changed French perceptions of entertainment, race, and ethnics by offering a new form of entertainment and culture that were unfamiliar with in the clubs of Montmartre and Montparnasse.[25]

[1] Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Folies-Bergère." Encyclopædia Britannica. November 06, 2008. Accessed February 18, 2019.

[2] "Four Paintings." A&A | Monet: Autumn Effect at Argenteuil: The Impressionists. Accessed February 18, 2019.

[3] "Folies Bergere Stage First Revue." History.com. November 24, 2009. Accessed February 18, 2019.

[4] "Four Paintings."

[5] "Folies Bergere Stage First Revue."

[6] Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia.

[7] Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia.

[8] Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia.

[9] "Folies Bergere Stage First Revue."

[10] "Four Paintings."

[11] "Folies Bergere Stage First Revue."

[12] Gourse, Leslie. "Jazz Liberates Paris." American Heritage 51, no. 2 (April 2000): 42.

[13] Gourse, 42.

[14] Hewitt, Nicholas. "Black Montmartre: American Jazz and Music Hall in Paris in the Interwar Years." Journal of Romance Studies, no. 3 (2005): 26.

[15] Jackson, Jeffrey H. "Music-Halls and the Assimilation of Jazz in 1920s Paris." Journal of Popular Culture 34, no. 2 (Fall 2000): 71.

[16] Hewitt, 26.

[17] Hewitt, 26.

[18] Hewitt, 26.

[19] Hewitt, 28.

[20] Jackson, 69.

[21] Jackson, 69.

[22] Jackson, 70.

[23] Jackson, 70.

[24] Jackson, 70.

[25] Jackson, 70, 77.

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Folies-Bergère." Encyclopædia Britannica November 06, 2008. Accessed February 18, 2019. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Folies-Bergere.

"Folies Bergere Stage First Revue." History.com. November 24, 2009. Accessed February 18, 2019. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/folies-bergere-stage-first-revue.

"Four Paintings." A&A | Monet: Autumn Effect at Argenteuil: The Impressionists. Accessed February 18, 2019.

Gourse, Leslie. "Jazz Liberates Paris." American Heritage 51, no. 2 (April 2000): 42. https://proxy.library.brocku.ca/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=31h&AN=2937563&site=eds-live&scope=site.

Hewitt, Nicholas. "Black Montmartre: American Jazz and Music Hall in Paris in the Interwar Years." Journal of Romance Studies, no. 3 (2005): 25-31. https://proxy.library.brocku.ca/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsglr&AN=edsgcl.166694624&site=eds-live&scope=site.

Jackson, Jeffrey H. "Music-Halls and the Assimilation of Jazz in 1920s Paris." Journal of Popular Culture 34, no. 2 (Fall 2000): 69–82. doi:10.1111/j.0022-3840.2000.3402pass:[_]69.x.