LAppearances are sometimes deceiving. The large posters displayed on the eastern ramparts of the city arriving from Tonnay-Charente announce the headliners of the Stereoparc electro music festival organized at the end of July. However, it is in a different atmosphere that the city has been immersed since Tuesday June 25.
David Briand
Maxime Le Forestier in rehearsal Wednesday June 26 with the choir of the Rochefort Conservatory.
Dressed in sailor shirts, accreditations around their necks, dozens of festival-goers bustle through town, rushing from one site to another, well guided by large orientation signs signposting all the festival sites.
For downtown merchants, this is a welcome windfall. “From the morning, around 8 a.m. to 8:30 a.m., I see customers,” says Muriel Molin, who runs the tobacco press at the Théâtre, rue de la République, located between the two poles of attraction which are the Corderie royale and the center. In addition to tobacco, cold drinks flow on these hot days. Business is doing better than in the middle of summer.
A few dozen meters away, at the corner of Place Colbert, Didier Ferrieux, the owner of the restaurant O Bistrot du Sud and the wine bar opposite it, Planche et Vin, is not to be outdone. Reputed to be the establishment which serves the latest for both lunchtime (until 3 p.m.) and evening (until 11 p.m.) services, it sees customers passing by, some of whom have already returned from a year on the ‘other. “Many work in production companies located in big cities,” he points out. We can show that in Rochefort, we too do things well. » Night owls can order cheeses and charcuterie across the street for up to 2 hours, a rarity.
Spots
Previously, the public was divided between several spots, one of the most popular being the Rade de la Méduse. At the heart of the arsenal, the concert bar restaurant brand took possession of the adjoining Accro-mâts during the festival, offering the most beautiful terrace in the city.
David Briand
On the Accro-mâts bridge, the most beautiful terrace in the city.
Galloping from one place to another, the deputy mayor in charge of entertainment Gérard Pons is satisfied with the occupancy rate of the hotel-restaurants. “The Royal Arsenal Residence (120 accommodations) is full, as were the surrounding restaurants last night (Tuesday, Editor’s note). »
David Briand
On the Accro-mâts bridge, one of the most beautiful terraces in the city.
Only the blazing sun on Wednesday June 26 could dampen the ambient heat. Looking for a corner of shade on Place Colbert, around fifty people were bustling around at 6:30 p.m. this Wednesday in front of the Rebab concert, which reinterpreted Amy Winehouse’s repertoire.
A few wingbeats away, at the Michel-Legrand music and dance conservatory, several dozen parents, telephone in hand, immortalized the meeting of the choir and Maxime Le Forestier. A full-scale rehearsal for the hundred children who worked for months on the repertoire of the author of “San Francisco” before their joint concert this Thursday evening, June 27 at the Théâtre de la Coupe d’or (sold out). “It’s moving to hear songs we wrote sung by children,” said the interpreter.
The festival continues this Thursday with the MC Solaar concert on the main stage of the Corderie.
