Visit the Choregies d’Orange

Located around an hour’s drive from Benvengudo Hotel is the commune of Orange, the locations for the Chorégies d’Orange, a summer opera festival held each year in an ancient Roman theater.

Orange

Orange was established in 40 BC by veterans of the Roman Second Legion and was named Arausio or “the Julian colony of Arausio established by the soldiers of the second legion”. Arausio is a significant name in Roman history, because it was in this region that the Battle of Arausio took place.

This battle is regarded as one of ancient Rome’s worst defeats and significant because it paved the way for Gaius Marius, the man who reformed the Roman armies. Marius authorised recruitment of landless citizens, eliminated the manipular military formations, and reorganised the structure of the legions into separate cohorts.

Théâtre antique d’Orange

The Ancient Theatre of Orange was constructed in the early 1st century AD and is owned by the municipality of Orange. The theatre played a major role in the life of the citizens, who spent a large part of their free time there, the theatre was seen by the Roman authorities not only as a means of spreading Roman culture to the colonies, but also as a way of distracting them from all political activities.

The Festival

The festival in modern day Orange began in 1860 and was held periodically until its restoration in 1869, after which it became the location of the popular ‘Roman Festival’ celebrating the glory of Rome and included a performance of Méhul’s opera, Joseph. The name Chorégies was assigned to the festival in 1902 and can be traced back to the tax that was imposed on wealthy Romans to pay for theatrical productions.

Until 1969 the Chorégies consisted of plays, alternating with musical works, opera and symphonies. However, after that date, Orange became solely an opera festival and theatrical works were performed at Avignon. Since 1981 UNESCO has recognized the theatre as a World Heritage Site.

Benvengudo Hotel

Benvengudo Hotel is a 4 star luxury boutique hotel located in Les Baux-de-Provence. Set in an authentic Provencal country house, its idyllic location offers a perfect base from which to explore this remarkable region in the South of France.

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