Théâtre Robert-Houdin

The Théâtre Robert-Houdin, initially advertised as the Théâtre des Soirées Fantastiques de Robert-Houdin, was a Paris theatre dedicated primarily to the performance of stage illusions. Founded by the famous magician Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin in 1845 at No. 164 Galerie Valois as part of the Palais-Royal, it moved in 1852 to a permanent home at No. 8, Boulevard des Italiens. The theatre's later directors, before its demolition in 1924, included Robert-Houdin's protégé Hamilton and the illusionist and film innovator Georges Méliès. When he first founded the theatre, Robert-Houdin was known primarily for his guest appearances as a magician and his clever mechanical inventions. Eager to solidify his work as a stage performer, he leased assembly rooms in the Palais-Royal and had them converted into a small but elegant proscenium theatre auditorium. In setting his stage, Robert-Houdin deliberately set himself apart from conventional stage-magic traditions; he eschewed the usual emphasis on dazzling visual confusion, replacing it with a simple drawing-room look with light furniture in the Style Louis XV. After a rocky start, his theatre gained critical respect, and boomed in popularity with the introduction of Robert-Houdin's mind-reading illusion "Second Sight". In early 1852, Robert-Houdin transferred the theatre's directorship to his former pupil Hamilton (born Pierre Etienne Chocat

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