Last year, you were more than 520 000 people attending one or more performances of “La Fête”. In its 6-year run, this is a record that has made “LA FÊTE” not only one of the most important cultural events of Thailand, but also one of the most important cultural festivals initiated by France in Asia. This success is a reflection of Franco-Thai relations and Thailand’s growing importance as a privileged partner of France within the ASEAN.

The success of “La Fête” is firstly due to the Thai and French artists who wish to share with us their collaborative effort, I refer in particular to the company Philippe Genty who will make you dream, to the photographer Laurent Ballesta whose exhibition “Planet Ocean” will assure as beautiful successor to “Earth from Above” by Yann Arthus-Bertrand, to the extraordinary exhibition “Dvaravati”, but also all Thai and French artists who have worked or performed together such as photographers Pascal Blondeau and Michael Shaowanasai or during the Music Day, the inaugural symphonic concert, and the must-attend “dinner in the dark”.

This success is also shared by our partners and sponsors who, this year too, despite the economic crisis, have agreed to combine their efforts and offer you an exceptional program and an opportunity to dream. More than ever, they deserve our warmest gratitude for their contribution to the friendship between Thailand and France, and also to the pleasure of all our spectators. I am speaking of:

Our institutional partners : the Thai Ministry of Culture, the Fine Arts Department, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, CULTURESFRANCE, uniFrance, the Conseils Régionaux of Bourgogne, Provence-Alpes-Côte-d’Azur and Poitou-Charentes, the Conseil Général of Yvelines, the cities of Toulouse and Rennes, the Sopexa, Maison de la France, Irasec, Dreg.

Our Media Partners: Channel [V] (Official media), JCDecaux, True Vision, TAN Network, NBT, TV Thai, BTS, Matichon, Bangkok Post, lepetitjournal.com, Gavroche, Daily News, Happening.

Our artistic partners: CentralWorld, ZEN Department Store, King Power Group, Pullman Bangkok King Power Hotel, Aksra Theatre, Thailand Creative and Design Centre, SF World Cinema, Jim Thompson Art Centre, Bangkok Symphony Orchestra, Bed Supperclub, Ovation, Ipsos, Thailand Cultural Centre, Patravadi Theatre, Princess Sirindhorn Anthropology Center, Bangkok Artistic and Cultural Centre, Thailand Association of the Blind, TK Park, Numthong Gallery, Kathmandu Photo Gallery and Catherine Schubert Fine Art Gallery.

Our “Golden sponsors”: Carrefour, Total, Sanofi Aventis and Sanofi Pasteur, Glow, GDF SUEZ, the Accor Group (Official Hotels)

Our “Silver sponsors”: Double A, Air France (Official Airline), Raimonland, Calyon, EDF, Muang Thai Life Assurance, KPN Music Academy, Sofitel Bangkok Silom, Grand Mercure Fortune, L’Occitane, RCSC.

Our “Friends sponsors”: Nestlé, Schneider Electric, BNP Paribas, Dextra, La Mer, Technip, Essilor, Hermès, L’Oréal Paris, Alstom, Evian, EasyKart.net, MEC Group, Bumrungrad hospital, Mpo Asia, Fives, Mist 1000, Decathlon.

“La FÊte” for all !
Classical or modern, free or not, the program for 2009 is open to all. Visual theatre, classical music, Hip-Hop dance, modern puppetry, the Music festival, DJ, new circus, cinema, underwater photographs, fashion, design, science, heritage, anthropology and gastronomy; there is something for everyone!

So come celebrate and “Long live La FÊte”!