“Les Clés du Festival” – a new museum in Avignon

The Avignon festival, the largest theatre festival in the world, has up until now been lacking a year-round showcase; a place allowing visitors to comprehend the immense stage that Avignon becomes every year for 3 weeks in July.

This is precisely what has been created at Maison Jean Vilar, which opened a new permanent exhibition entitled “Les Clés du Festival” (The Keys of the Festival) in the summer of 2025. The exhibition’s striking scenography allows audiences both familiar and unfamiliar with the event to (re)discover the unique atmosphere of the Avignon festival, which was founded by Jean Vilar in 1947 and quickly became known as the “IN” (= official), before being joined 60 years ago, in 1966, by the “OFF” (fringe) festival.

The exhibition immerses visitors in the different elements of the festival all the way from its conception to the present day: the construction of the various stages, the festival’s multidisciplinary approach to performance art, how it became a melting pot for ideas, the birth and development of the “OFF” (fringe) festival, how the Avignon festival is based on creation…

With photos by Agnès Varda, official photographer for the event for many years, costumes from the era of Jean Vilar, mock-up sketches, videos and sounds archives, the exhibition fully immerses visitors in the 80-year history of this international festival, one that will forever associate Avignon with the world of theatre.