Le Divan du Monde

About

Le Divan du Monde ('The World Divan') is a converted theater, now operating as a concert space, located at 75 rue des Martyrs, in the 18th arrondissement, in the Pigalle neighborhood of Paris.

History: At the beginning of the 19th century, there was a ballroom called the Saint-Flour Musette. In 1861 it was turned into the Brasserie des Martyrs, which was sponsored by Charles Baudelaire, Edgar Degas, and Jules Vallès. This was replaced in 1873 by a café-concert christened the "Japanese Divan" by its owner Théophile Lefort, who decorated it in Japanese-style. His estate, Jules Sarrazin, had a second room built in the base called "Temple of Good Mood".

The cabaret singer Yvette Guilbert became famous there when she appeared in 1891 and Dranem was also a featured artist. The pantomime The Bride Going to Bed was performed there in 1894. This included for the first time a "naked" woman (i.e. wearing a something transparent blouse), which scandalized the audience. Toulouse-Lautrec and Adolphe Léon Willette, then Pablo Picasso, were frequent visitors. In 1901, the Divan became the Théâtre de la Comédie...