FRANCE - Best of Europe 2014 - page 329

You can book at the box office, by phone, or online. Two different companies present
concerts,buttheschedulewilltellyouwhotocontactforticketstoaparticularperformance.
The small box office (with schedules and tickets) is to the left of the chapel entrance gate
(4 Boulevard du Palais, Mo: Cité), or call 01 42 77 65 65 or 06 67 30 65 65 for schedules
and reservations. You can leave your message in English—just speak clearly and spell your
name. You can check schedules at www.archetspf.asso.fr , but if you want to book online,
visit www.classictic.com , which lets you conveniently print out your email confirmation as
your ticket. Flavien from Euromusic offers last-minute discounts with this topic when seats
areavailable(limit2ticketsperbook).VIPticketsarediscountedto€30andPrestigetickets
to €25. The offer applies only to Euromusic concerts and must be purchased with cash only
at the Sainte-Chapelle ticket booth close to concert time.
The evening entrance is at 4 Boulevard du Palais, between the gilded gate of the Palais
de Justice and the Conciergerie. You'll enter through the law courts hall, directly into the
royal upper chapel, just as St. Louis once did.
Salle Pleyel: This concert hall on the Right Bank hosts world-class artists, from string
quartets and visiting orchestras to international opera stars. Tickets range from €10 to €150,
depending on the artist and seats you choose, and are usually hard to come by, so it's best to
order online in advance (252 Rue du Faubourg St. Honoré, Mo: Ternes, tel. [phone],
www.sallepleyel.fr ) .
Other Venues: Look also for daytime concerts in parks, such as the Luxembourg
Garden. Even the Galeries Lafayette department store offers concerts. Many of these con-
certs are free (entrée libre), such as the Sunday atelier concert sponsored by the American
Church (generally Sept-June at 17:00 but not every week and not in Dec, 65 Quai d'Orsay,
Mo: Invalides, RER: Pont de l'Alma, tel. [phone], www.acparis.org ).
Opera
Parisishometotwowell-respectedoperavenues.The OpéraBastille isthemassivemodern
operahousethatdominatesPlacedelaBastille.Comehereforstate-of-the-artspecialeffects
and modern interpretations of classic ballets and operas. In the spirit of this everyman's op-
era, unsold seats are available at a big discount to seniors and students 15 minutes before
the show. Standing-room-only tickets for €15 are also sold for some performances (Mo:
Bastille). The Opéra Garnier, Paris' first opera house, hosts opera and ballet performances.
Comehereforlessexpensivetickets andgrandbelleépoquedecor(Mo:Opéra).Togettick-
ets for either opera house, it's easiest to reserve online at www.operadeparis.fr , or call 01 71
25 24 23 outside France or toll tel. [phone] inside France. You can also go directly to
the Opéra Bastille's ticket office (open daily 11:00-18:00).