The Academy in Guyana : Transmission and Education

Making the Opera’s Mission Accessible to Remote Audiences

Since 2022, the Paris Opera has been developing an ambitious territorial cultural cooperation program with French Guiana, aiming to establish its presence across the entire national territory—both metropolitan and overseas—while promoting equal opportunities and sharing lyrical and choreographic heritage. The program is structured around three main axes: supporting young talents enrolled in artistic training, providing access to the Paris Opera’s artistic heritage, and promoting artistic and cultural education.

By the numbers

8,300 spectators attended 23 performances of opera singing, chamber music, classical dance, and contemporary dance at the Trois Fleuves in Cayenne since 2022.
1,000 participants took part in 402 free workshops in classical dance, contemporary dance, opera singing, and string instruments organized since 2022.

Recent developments

Partnerships with local stakeholders have enabled the Opera in French Guiana to become part of the daily life of residents in Cayenne, Rémire-Montjoly, Matoury, Kourou, Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni, Maripasoula, and Papaïchton.
The Opera in French Guiana continues in 2025/26 with two series of performances at the Trois Fleuves Hall in Cayenne featuring artists from the Paris Opera, as well as two series of workshops in classical dance, contemporary dance, opera singing, and instruments led by Paris Opera artists.
Building on projects previously carried out in Maripasoula and Papaïchton, the Opera in French Guiana will, for the first time, offer artistic practice workshops to children and young people in Camopi, an inland commune in western French Guiana.
The Academy continues to develop the OpérApprentis artistic and cultural education program in partnership with Lycée Melkior-Garré in Cayenne, the CFA of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of French Guiana in Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni, and Lycée polyvalent Balata in Matoury. Guianese artists visit the CFAs to offer apprentices workshops in artistic practice connected to their training. Apprentices are also introduced to various professions at the Paris Opera to help inform their career projects.
In 2025/26, as part of the Young Audiences program, the Academy presents YANA, a creation by Samuel Fania and Amine Boussa, performed by about ten young Guianese dancers from the Compagnie Jeunes Sans Limites in Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni.

Future development prospects

Strengthen the program’s management by appointing a full-time project officer to expand and deepen collaboration with local stakeholders, with the aim of establishing permanent initiatives in French Guiana.
Organize a trip to Paris for the young participants in the program.

Did you know?

Available on the Paris Opera Play streaming platform, the documentary series L’Opéra en Guyane explores the creation of the program, from the opening performance in Cayenne to the dance workshops led by Paris Opera artists in collaboration with various partners in Cayenne, Kourou, and Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni. It offers an immersive look into the process of artistic transmission at the heart of the institution’s mission.

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