t was once tradition that French actors wore their own jewels on stage – and the more brilliant these looked, the better this reflected upon the performer – even if they were utterly inappropriate to the role played. Before her early death from consumption in 1858, ‘Rachel’, who rose dizzyingly from a family of pedlars to become a celebrated actress known by her first name, changed her jewellery for each act when playing the title role in Racine’s.
These objects feature in a fascinating show of stage jewellery from the collection of the Comédie Française, the national theatre founded in the 17th century. It is the first exhibition to be held at the L’École School of Jewelry Arts, and is due to open soon in Paris in a former aristocratic mansion on Boulevard Montmartre, a cut stone’s throw from Place Vendôme – the heart of luxury jewellery retailing.
Nicolas Bos, president of Van Cleef & Arpels, enjoys the contrast between the mansion’s discreet façade and the bling inside. At L’Ècole, there are spaces to study gemology and other aspects of jewellery. Benches with microscopes now sit within high-ceilinged gilded salons. There are courses and podcasts on jewellery history as well as hands-on opportunities to explore the craft – its savoir-faire. There will be a serious library for researchers, a street-front bookshop, and dark blue galleries where treasures – genuine and theatrical fakes – glimmer out of the inky darkness.
Comédie Française actor François-Joseph Talma, an intimate of Napoleon, was thought to have given the emperor hints on how to strut across the European theatre of war. In return, Napoleon gave him a gilded circlet of laurels modelled on his own – now among the items on show.Rachel’s jewels, including tiny bangles for her tiny wrists, take centre stage.