Charles Berling: 'The 2026 edition will be the last I will have the honor of presenting'

A page is turning on the hill of Ollioules. As ticket sales opened on February 3, the programming for the 2026 Summer Festival takes on a special flavor. Charles Berling, director of the national theatre, announced it with emotion in his editorial: 'The 2026 edition will be the last that I will have the honor of presenting with my beloved team. We therefore wanted it to be particularly vibrant this year.'

8,700 PINK CARNATIONS

To mark the occasion, the institution is pulling out all the stops by bringing together great works and committed voices, blending opera, participatory theatre, philosophy, and international dance. The flagship event is undoubtedly the arrival of the legendary Tanztheater Wuppertal. From July 9 to 12, the amphitheatre of Châteauvallon will host Nelken (Les œillets), a masterpiece by Pina Bausch. On this occasion, the stage will be transformed into a vast bed of 8,700 pink carnations. 'A setting of breathtaking beauty for this immortal creation [...] where dance, song, and theatre combine in a fresco of unequaled visual and emotional power,' states the festival management. Of note, these are the only French dates of the 2025-2026 tour for this emblematic piece in the history of contemporary dance. The festival opens on June 26 with a great classic of the operatic repertoire: Madame Butterfly. The national theatre invites the Opéra de Toulon for three performances of Giacomo Puccini's work. Directed by Florent Siaud and conducted by Victorien Vanoosten, this production promises to sublimate 'absence and waiting through masterful lyricism' through the tragic destiny of the geisha Cio-Cio-San. True to its DNA of political and societal reflection, Châteauvallon presents Les Résistantes on July 4. Following the success of Léon Blum, une vie héroïque, the trio composed of Philippe Collin, Violaine Ballet, and Charles Berling returns with a theatrical and participatory adaptation of the France Inter podcast. This show highlights the often-invisibilized role of women in the Resistance, through the figures of Geneviève de Gaulle, Mila Racine, and Lucie Aubrac. 'We conceived this event as an agora where speech flows,' explains Philippe Collin. For Charles Berling, this participatory setup is essential: 'The fight for Freedom is a fight that goes through the development of free thought.'

Ticket sales are open at:

https://www.chateauvallon-liberte.fr