It was in the Cour d'Honneur of the Palais des papes that the Festival d'Avignon began in 1947, with William Shakespeare's The Tragedy of King Richard II, directed by Jean Vilar. It has long remained the main venue of the Festival. It was only from the mid-1960s that new venues open. These new locations, often historical and seldom dedicated to live performance, offer surprising and original theatrical spaces and give Avignon its personality each summer as a city-theatre. While each year the Festival moves to new venues that meet the needs of artists, the Cour d'honneur du Palais des papes remains its legendary venue. An open-air theatre, for an audience of 2,000 people gathered in the Provencal night, in the heart of a monument on UNESCO's World Heritage Sites. On July 18, 2019, the "Sécuri-Site" label was awarded to the Festival d'Avignon and Avignon Tourisme for the Palais des papes site. This label - issued by the Préfecture of Vaucluse - highlights the respect of the systems, the actions and the means deployed by the operators in favour of the visitors and spectators security, complying with responsible partnership.
In 2021, the Cour d'honneur will be given a new stage installation. The sixth since the Festival was founded. For two years, experts from cultural structures and craftsmen from different trades have worked together to create and install this new device. Tiago Rodrigues and his Cerisaie will inaugurate it, with a piece that is highly emblematic of the passage from one era to another.
More information about the Sixth Court
Numbered seats.
Download the access map from AVIGNON-CENTRe train station from the PARKING DES ITALIENS from the PARKING JEAN JAURÈS from the PARKING DE L'ORATOIRE from the PARKING DE L'ÎLE PIOT