She will take over as the director of the Théâtre National de Nice on November 1st, succeeding Irina Brook, who has chosen to continue her activities with her company. Culture Minister Franck Riester commends Brook’s “steadfast commitment to all audiences, especially the young, to share with them the pleasure of theater and the language of Shakespeare.”
Muriel Mayette-Holtz, the former administrator of the Comédie-Française from 2006 to 2014 and director of the French Academy in Rome – Villa Medici for three years until September 2018, will therefore lead the Théâtre National de Nice.
An actress, director, and educator, Muriel Mayette-Holtz became a member of the Comédie-Française in 1988 before becoming its general administrator in 2006, a position she held until 2014. The first woman to head the prestigious public institution, she was subsequently appointed as the director of the French Academy in Rome – Villa Medici.
Her project for the Théâtre National de Nice revolves around presenting major European texts to make them accessible to a large and renewed audience without excluding contemporary stage writings, which will resonate with the repertoire. She aims to give the CDN a distinct identity by developing strong connections with theaters from the “Mediterranean Europe” (Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece).
While increasing the series of performances at the theater and intensifying regional, national, and international tours of the Théâtre National de Nice’s productions, Muriel Mayette-Holtz envisions working closely and exchanging with local structures and teams, as well as heavily involving educational field actors and amateurs. The Théâtre National de Nice will also partner with drama schools to help integrate young actors.
Her ambition is to work towards making the venue a national and European reference while opening it up more to the city and its diverse inhabitants.
