BRUSSELS COMMEMORATES 150 YEARS of ‘LES MISÉRABLES’ SIZED FOR VICTOR HUGO PRESS KIT CONTENTS Brussels commemorates 150 years of ‘Les Misérables’ by Victor Hugo p. 3 On the programme p. 4 Speech by the Ambassador of France in Belgium p. 5 I. Les Misérables, Victor Hugo and Brussels: a strong connection p. 6 II. Walk : in the footsteps of Victor Hugo p. 8 III. Book : In the footsteps of Victor Hugo between Brussels and Paris p. 12 IV. Brusselicious, gastronomic banquet : les Misérables p. 13 V. Events «Les Misérables : 150th anniversary» • Gastronomy p. 15 • Exhibitions p. 15 • Conferences p. 17 • Film p. 19 • Theater p. 20 • Guided tours p. 21 Contacts p. 23 Attachment P. 24 BRUsseLS COMMEMORAtes 150 YEARS Of ‘Les MisÉRABLes’ BY ViCTOR HUGO LES MISÉRABLES IS ONE OF THE GREATEST CLASSICS OF WORLD LITERATURE. THE MASTERPIECE BY VICTOR HUGO ALSO REMAINS VERY POPULAR THANKS TO THE MUSICAL VERSION AND THE MANY MOVIES. Over thirty films have been made of ‘Les Miserables’ and Tom Hooper (The King’s Speech) is currently shooting a new version with a top cast. In March, it is exactly 150 years since ‘Les Misérables’ by Victor Hugo was published. Not in Paris as is often assumed, but in Brussels. The first theatrical performance of ‘Les Misérables’, an adaptation of the book by his son Charles, also took place in Brussels. In addition to these two premieres of ‘Les Misérables’, Brussels played a crucial role in Victor Hugo’s life and his career as a writer and thinker. Closely related to Hugo’s connection with Brussels is also his call for a United States of Europe. In those days a utopia, but one and a half centuries later, Brussels is the capital of a united Europe. 3 ON THE PROGRAMME To mark the 150th anniversary of ‘Les Misérables’ there are lots of events on the programme, from the purely literary to the gastronomic. Cinematek is holding a movie special on Victor Hugo and the Brussels Town Hall forms the backdrop for a major colloquium with some impressive speakers. At the Théâtre Royal du Parc, where Victor Hugo occasionally atten- ded an evening of theater and spectacle, in the autum, they will be staging is a new version of ‘Les Misérables’. And the renowned puppet theater Toone will be staging Ruy Blas, one of Victor Hugo’s main theatre plays. Highlights in the programme are also the gourmet banquets of ‘Les Miserables’, which are also part of the gastronomic theme year Brusselicious. The publication of “Les Miserables” was such an overwhelming success at the time that Hugo’s publisher Brussels organized a large banquet with prominent locals and journalists from across Europe. During the ban- quet in March, historic recipes from the time of Hugo will be recreated. For the second banquet at the end of May in the Galeries Saint-Hubert, the gastronomic inspiration will come from Florian Hugo. The great-grandson of Victor Hugo is coming specially from New York, where he runs the restaurant Cognac. During the theme year devoted to Victor Hugo and Les Misérables, some museums will be putting their documents about Victor Hugo prominently on display. At present, the small exhibition ‘Les Miserables 1862 -2012’ is already running at the Librarium of the Royal Library of Belgium. Likewise, the new Museum of Arts and Manuscripts focuses on Victor Hugo and at the Museum of the National Bank of Belgium it will be possible to see, inter alia, that the author of Les Misérables was then one of the main shareholders in the National Bank. A complete overview of events can be found in the event brochure about the 150th anniversary of Les Misérables by Victor Hugo. There is a convenient new map (EN, FR, NL and D) with a marked city walk in the footsteps of Victor Hugo. The starting point is the Grote Markt where Hugo lived at two places. After that, it visits some classics such as the Cathedral and the Galeries St. Hubert, as well as the Belga Queen and some of the addresses of his mistresses are on the route. The map costs 0.5 euro and is available from the tourist offices of VISITBRUSSELS. Quite a few guide organizations have made the life of Victor Hugo a theme for a walk, which is available on request for groups and on certain dates for individuals as well. For the occasion, VISITBRUSSELS is publishing an event brochure and on the website WWW.LESMISERABLES150.BE you can find all the information about the anniversary year. There is also a press page with a digital version of the press kit in 3 languages and a number of photos that may be used royalty-free. We wish you a pleasant voyage of discovery in the footsteps of Victor Hugo! 4 SPEECH BY THE AMBASSADOR OF FRANCE IN BELGIUM Ladies and gentlemen, It is an honour and a privilege to welcome you here today to the “Residénce de France” on such an illustrious occasion. 2012 marks the 150th anniversary of the publication of Victor Hugo’s ‘Les Misérables”. In fact, it was published here in Brussels on the 30th of March 1862! This literary masterpiece has gained renown all over the world. It has become a hugely popular work thanks in particular to the musical, the play, the films or even the music that it has inspired. To mark this 150th anniversary of the publication of Les Misérables, a string of initiatives have been launched by associa- tions or local authorities, by individuals who harbour a passion for Victor Hugo and his work, taking the form of a broad spectrum of events between Paris and Brussels. Exhibitions are in the pipeline in Montreuil-sur-mer for example, or again in Waterloo, Kris Clerckx can probably be described as Victor Hugo’s number one fan. He came to see us around a year ago. He won us over with his project on Les Misérables and convinced us to become involved in the organisation of a Victor Hugo pro- gramme. He has served as the lynchpin between all the events. It was only natural for the French Embassy to lend its support to this celebration. Victor Hugo, a man of letters but also a man of strong convictions, forced by circumstance and his courageous opinions to share his time between France and Belgium, can in some way be considered as a symbolic link between our two countries. This anniversary gives us an opportunity to rediscover his work and his ideas – in particular his dream of a united Europe, which today takes on parti- cular resonance here in Brussels. It takes us back to a point in history, plunges us into the political and social climate of an age in which the creator of Jean Valjean featured prominently. The events programme that will be rolled out throughout 2012 (exhibitions, film projections, conferences, a banquet, plays, publication of books and travel guides, cultural tourist trails, etc.) is both rich and varied. In a few instants I will pass the floor to Kris Clercks, who will go through this programme with you in greater detail. Before I do so, I would like to thank all those who have given their backing to these projects, and in particular the Visit- Brussels teams for accepting to join in this celebration of Les Misérables and for all the efforts they have made to turn the spotlight, this year and beyond, on Victor Hugo’s historical ties with Brussels and on the places that would almost certainly have been his favourite haunts. I hope that this year in celebration of Victor Hugo will be anything but “Misérable”. Thank you very much for your attention. Michèle Boccoz Ambassador of France in Belgium 5 I. LES MISÉRABLES, VICTOR HUGO AND BRUSSELS: A STRONG CONNECTION Victor Hugo spent a total of around five hundred days living in Brussels. The first time, he came to admire the city as a tourist, before Brussels went on to take on a different meaning in his life as a crucial location for his career as a writer and a thinker. In 1862, this inspiring link with Brussels prompted the publication of ‘Les Misérables’. Whilst based in what is today’s European capital, 150 years ago Victor Hugo was the first to launch an appeal to build a United States of Europe. FROM TOURIST TO POLITICAL REFUGEE Victor Hugo first visited Brussels in 1837. At the time, Hugo was aged 35 with his record of literary achievements already boasting such best-selling novels as ‘Le Notre-Dame de Paris’, ‘Le Dernier Jour d’un Condamné’ and the stage play ‘Hernani’. During his first visit to Brussels, Victor Hugo admired the Grote Markt/Grand Place and the cathedral, which prompted him to include this first impression: ‘I am full of admiration for Brussels…’ in his ‘France et Belgique’ travel book. Fifteen years later would see Victor Hugo make a return visit to Brussels under very different circumstances. Fleeing from Paris after Napoleon III had seized power on 2 December 1851, Hugo managed to cross the Franco-Belgian border on a forged passport under the false name of Jacques Firmin Lanvin. His mistress Juliette Drouet followed in his footsteps, carrying the manuscript for Les Misères in her luggage, which Victor Hugo would go on to work up into ‘Les Misérables’ over the next few years to come. Same as a number of other political exiles from the day, including Alexandre Dumas, Karl Marx and Multatuli to name but a few, in Brussels Victor Hugo found a safehaven, a place that gave him freedom of thought.