Saint Louis Beacon - Bastille Day marked in Soulard, Maplewood

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Bastille Day marked in Soulard, Maplewood

By Amelia Flood, Special to the Beacon

Last Updated ( Thursday, 10 July 2008 )

There may be no infamous French prison to storm (such as the artistic representation at right), but that doesn't mean cities in the St. Louis area won't be marking the 219th Bastille Day.

Jean-Perre-Louis-Laurent Houel

"Prise de la Bastille"

Celebrations in and near the Soulard neighborhood and in Maplewood are just some of the events honoring the start of the French Revolution nationally and internationally.

Art, henna painting and a guillotine (not sharp) can be found along with entertainment and food this weekend.

Bastille Day, a national holiday in France, recalls the day -- July 14, 1789 -- that French peasants stormed the Bastille prison in Paris. The event marked the beginning of uprisings leading to the French Revolution. The revolution would end with formation of a French republic and later, the executions of King Louis XVI and his wife, Marie Antoinette. The day is a national holiday in France.

City -- Soulard & Benton Park

Soulard will host its traditional Bastille Day celebration for the 22nd year. The two days of events kick off Friday at 6 p.m. with the beheading - again - of the ill-fated Louis and his Austrian queen.

Their date with the guillotine follows a parade with a "mob" and led by the Joia percussion band.

The Soulard festivities continue into Saturday with an all-day flea market and festival at Soulard Market Park. About 75 booths will be selling wares while local bands provide music. Beer and barbeque are the scheduled fare.

In the shadow of the brewery, the Chatillon-DeMenil Mansion speaks to the French heritage of the area. Unlike the more free-wheeling celebration in Soulard, the reception at the museum house will elegantly replace the royal French standard with the tricolour of the Revolution, as attendees are invited to sing "La Marseillaise." The beer is free; the wine is reasonable; the grounds of the old home are lovely

Maplewood

"Let them eat art," not cake, is the rule in Maplewood this weekend. The city's "Let Them Eat Art" festival -- a progressive art show along with live entertainment throughout its downtown -- starts Friday night.

Organizers are calling the event "the Maplewood Christmas."

Bastille Day Events

City of St. Louis

The Soulard neighborhood's 22nd Annual Bastille Day celebration begins Friday at 6 p.m. with the farewell to the royals at the corner of Russell and Menard. The mob parade steps out at 6:30 p.m., leading to Nadine's at 12th an Allen and the beheading at 7 p.m.

Saturday, the Bastille Days Flea Market will take place from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Soulard Market Park at the market.

The Chatillon-DeMenil Mansion will hold its annual reception, which is a much tamer celebration than its neighbor to the north. The royal flag will be replaced by the tricolour of the Revolution at about 2:30 p.m.

Maplewood

"Let Them Eat Art" 6-11 p.m. downtown Maplewood More than 40 shops and restaurants offer specials and live events.

"It's like the Christmas Walk meets Mardi Gras," Rachelle L'Ecuyer, Maplewood's director of community development, said. "It's kind of our summer event."

The Maplewood celebration is younger than Soulard's. It began three years ago. Each year, L'Ecuyer said, the event has grown. This year, which is also the city's 100th anniverary, all the city's downtown businesses are participating with specials and live events.

The focus of Maplewood's event changed this year. Last year, the city celebrated Bastille Day with a progressive art show. Cabaret-style readings of Shakespeare, burlesque, the St. Louis Craft Mafia and music are now part of the attraction.

"We've added this layer of entertainment," L'Ecuyer said. "You never know what you're going to get."

Editors' Picks

Books
- The demise of the book is greatly exaggerated. The phone book, dictionaries and encyclopedia are over. But life will go on for beautiful printing that provides words that transform. | James Gleick, New York Times
- "To Kill a Mockingbird" is the selection for the upcoming St. Louis Big Read, which is organized by Washington University. Dozens of events, including a staging of the play at the Edison Theater, will take place throughout January and February 2009.
- Author Michael Crichton dies at age 66: The creator of "Jurassic Park" and "Andromeda Strain" had been battling cancer, his family said. | New York Times
- Roger Ebert: To Studs: With Love and Memories. | The Huffington Post
Theater/Dance
- Ballet Eclectica’s “The Little Dancer Goes Around the World!” will be presented by the COCA Family Theatre Series for four shows at 7 p.m. Dec. 12, 11 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Dec. 13, and 1:30 Dec. 14 AT COCA, 524 Trinity Avenue. Tickets are $14 and $18 and are available through MetroTix and COCA Box Office (314-725-1834 x124).
- Come to the Union Avenue Christian Church, 733 Union Avenue, from noon to 1 p.m. Dec. 10 as students from nine St. Louis Public Schools perform international dances. The program is sponsored by Springboard to Learning & Young Audiences of St. Louis.
- The New Jewish Theater presents "The Last Seder" Dec. 3-21. Four daughters, each with a respective partner, have gathered to say goodbye to a loved who is already gone - patriarch Marvin who suffers from Alzheimer’s.
- "9 Parts of Desire" opens Nov. 7 at the St. Louis Actors' Studio. The play runs through Nov. 23 (Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. Sundays at 2 p.m.) at The Gaslight Theater 358 N. Boyle Ave. For tickets, Ticketmaster.com or 314-421-4400.
Music
- Come to the Touhill Center at UMSL from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Dec. 3 for the third “Warren Bellis Clarinet and Saxophone Festival,” a series of clinics and performances. For info: 314-516-2263.
- Jason Braun's project - Jason and the Beast - mixes hip hop with retelling classics from Homer to Shakespeare. Check out the work in an all-ages show at 8 p.m. Dec. 17 at the Focal Point in Mapelwood. $5 at the door.
- The UMSL Community Chorus, University Singers, University Orchestra and Vocal Point will put on a holiday concert at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 9 at the Blanche M. Touhill Performing Arts Center. For information about the free concert call 314-516-5980 or go to www.umsl.edu/~umslmusic/ The concert will include "Christmas Oratorio," "Carol of the Bells," traditional carols, Trumpet Concerto by Felix Mendelssohn and "O Magnum Mysterium."
- UMSL will present "Soul of the Season with Brian Owens and faculty and students from the Department of Music at UMSL at 7 p.m. Dec. 11 at the Blanche M. Touhill Performing Arts Center. Tickets are $5. For information, call 314-516-4949. Proceeds will benefit the Office of Multicultural Relations at UMSL.

Neighborhoods
- "Gorillas in Her Midst" is the topic of a lecture by Dr. Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka, African conservationist, at the St. Louis Zoo on Dec. 9. Doors will open at the Living World building at 6:30 p.m., with the lecture starting at 7 p.m. Reservations are encouraged 314-646-4771.
- Alice S. Handelman, president of The Press Club of Metropolitan St. Louis,has been honored as a 25 year member of National Federation of Press Women.The recognition was presented in Idaho Falls, Idaho, at the annual nationalcommunications conference of NFPW. Handelman was community relations director at Jewish Center for Aged for 18 years.
- Come to the Missouri Botanical Garden from 9 am. to 5 p,m. the Best of Missouri Market where you can find more than 120 artisans from throughout the state.
- Come to the Sophia M. Sachs Butterfly House from 5:30-7 P.m. on Oct. 3 and 10 for OctoberOwl Outings. Reservations, which are required, can be made online or at 636-733-2339. The "owls" are owl butterflies, which get their name from the underside of their wings, which resemble a bright yellow owl eye surrounded by rich, chocolate-colored feathers. These creatures are also most active in the evening.
Visual Arts
- Come to COCA, 524 Trinity Ave., from 6-8 p.m. Dec. 5 for the opening reception for Jill Evans Petzall: In-Different Light. The free exhibit continues through Jan. 18, 2009. For information, 314-725-6555.
- Mark Douglas, Bob Reuter and Antje Umstaetter have their photography on view at the Gallery at the Regional Arts Commission until Dec. 21. For info, visit www.art-stl.com
- Get Out the Vote - an installation of 22 posters - is on view now through 2008 in the Arthur and Helen Baer Visual Arts Galleries in the Centene Center for Arts and Education, 3547 Olive Street in Grand Center. The galleries are open Monday-Friday from 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
- Too often elitism is linked with being snobbish and condescending when in fact for many people it is a commitment to quality in various, if not all parts, of our lives. The Atlantic reports on the affecting elitism of Phillippe de Montebello , soon to retire as director of one of the world's greatest museums, the Metropolitan in New York City.
Movies/TV
- Project Runway: Bravo won't accept Heidi's "auf wiedersehen." The Weinstein Co. sold the rights to the series to Lifetime, but NBC Universal sued, saying it had a right of first refusal (Bravo is owned by NBC.) A judge has issued a preliminary injunction preventing Lifetime from promoting or broadcasting "Runway." | The New York Times
- "City of Lost Children" La Cité des enfants perdus plays at 8 p.m. Dec. 3 at Schlafly Bottleworks, 7260 Southwest Avenue, Maplewood, as part of the Webster Film Series. $4.
- Eating St. Louis, hour-long program based on the book of the same title by Patricia Corrigan, will be broadcast at 7 p.m. Dec. 1 on KETC/Channel 9 . The show explores five aspects of food culture in the area, from farming to how St. Louisans like pizza prepared.
- Co-writer of movie "Meet Me in St. Louis" dies at age 94: Irving Brecher was nominated for an Oscar for his work on the 1944 Judy Garland film. | Los Angeles Times

Firecracker Press

To read the story about the upcoming Community Cinema showing of "Helvetica," which will include a demonstration by Eric Woods and Matty Kleinberg of the Firecracker Press, click here .

Voices

Cartoons for Nov. 30, 2008
Editorial Cartoons

Shopping and bailouts and Christmas wishes - it's all economy all the time. Check out the work of Marshall Ramsey, John Sherffius, Bruce Beattie and Gary Markstein.
The newness has worn off negative campaign ads, but they are unlikely to end
In the News

Posted 12:10 p.m. Mon. Dec. 1 - The circumstances in this presidential election made it extremely difficult for any Republican to win. But political scientist Lana Stein points out that bashing opponents is becoming old had and people may well start to turn off or tune out those ads. (Illustration from a cartoon by Chris Britt.)
Food for all: a tough order, but a noble goal
In the News

At a time of economic problems and of thanksgiving, Dr. William H. Danforth looks with hope on the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center and the National Institute for Food and Agriculture as vehicles that can bring about an evergreen agricultural revolution.
If this turkey hadn't been chicken, he 'cudda been a contenda'
Beacon Columnists
Posted: 5 a.m. Wed. Nov. 26 - Columnist M.W. Guzy looks back on the time the police department boxing coach asked him to join the team. Even though he declined, "reasoning that if training would minimize my chances of getting hit, staying out of the ring entirely should pretty much neutralize the threat," he still recommends supporting and attending the annual "Guns 'N Hoses" event, which supports the Backstoppers organization.

The Lens

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