FIAF
BY ROBERTA GRAFF
Within the recesses of every
New Yorker’s heart there
is a bit of a Francophile.
Whether it’s the yearning for a
croissant with early morning coffee,
a lust for soup d’onion on a cold
winter’s night, a passion for Degas,
Renoir and Monet or the dream of
wearing Chanel, nothing triggers
desire like “things French.” Has
anyone not delighted to Gene Kelly
dancing through the streets of Paris
dozens of times, or had thoughts of
Proust when a certain scent triggers
memory? Certainly, not Me! I have
always loved everything French…
especially Edith Piaf.
The “Little Sparrow” stole my
heart decades ago. A French cabaret
singer born in l9l5 in the South
of France, Piaf sang hauntingly
autobiographical melodies of love,
loss and sorrow. Perhaps her most
famous song was “La Vie en Rose,”
and because my mother’s name was
Rose, her recordings were my earliest
musical recollections.
I heard PIAF! The Show, starring
Anne Carrere, was being performed
at the French Institute Alliance
Française (FIAF), New York’s premier
French cultural and language
center, but only for a few performances
in April. I didn’t hesitate to
obtain tickets to learn what FIAF
was all about.
FIAF is dedicated to innovative
and unique programing in education
and the arts of the French
culture. Their mission is to encourage
interaction and better understanding
between French-speaking
and American communities in the
United States. Not only do they
have a French language school and
the leading French library in our
country, but also film screenings,
music, theater and dance events
as well.
As for PIAF! The Show, which
was performed at the Florence
Guild Hall at 55 East 59th Street,
it was magnifique! Against a background
of photographs and images
of famous locations in Paris,
Anne Carrere captured without
a flaw Piaf’s soul through her
masterful narration of the ragsto
riches story of the French
chanteuse.
With French language classes,
classics of French Cinema, a chance
to participate in a wine tasting and
trips galore, there is an abundance
of treasures at FIAF. For anyone
who even smiles when they hear a
can-can, FIAF is worth a visit.
FIAF is located at 22 East 60th
Street in Manhattan.
For more information, go to
www.fiaf.org
PIAF! The Show
Jane Avril by Toulouse-Lautrec
American in Paris French onion soup
June 2018 ¢ NORTH SHORE TOWERS COURIER 51
/www.fiaf.org
