Montmartre is the new TV series by Channel 5 airing from tonight 4 June at 9.40pm (the other appointments are for the next three Thursdays). The title, full of suggestions, and the fact that it is a costume series, give us a foretaste of the emotions of a story halfway between historical reconstruction and melodrama. With a dive in Paris at the end of the 19th century, between cabarets, family secrets, social ambitions and broken destinies.
Montmartre Canale 5 TV series tonight 4 June: how many episodes are there? Plot and previews
Montmartre It is made up of 8 episodes – Canale 5 will broadcast two in a row for three on Thursday. Set in early twentieth century Parishas for protagonist Céleste (Alice Dufour), a cancan dancer from the Éléphant Rosea cabaret in the famous Parisian neighborhood. The girl has only one obsession: to find her two brothers, from whom she was separated after their father was killed before their eyes when they were still children.
In parallel, Arsène (Victor Meutelet), a talented engineer from a bourgeois family, must resign himself to an arranged marriage orchestrated by the authoritarian father when in reality he would just like to live his homosexuality freely. Rose (Claire Romain) on the other hand is a young washerwoman forced to work in a brothel by the man she loves and who systematically beats her.
Céleste does everything to save Rose, also because the young woman, in the meantime, becomes seriously ill. Meanwhile Arsene receives a mysterious letter that threatens to upset his certainties. After a daring performance at the venue – where you agree to perform in the first striptease numbersparking a huge scandal –, Céleste finds herself in danger and wonders if her sudden fame is really worth the sacrifice of happiness just conquered.
Alice Dufour in a scene from “Montmartre”. (TF1)
A historical drama set in Belle Époque Paris
Despite being a costume drama, Montmartre it is a series that deals with very contemporary themeshow female emancipation, social precariousness and sexual identity. The scene of Montmartre cabaret of the 19th century in fact provides an evocative backdrop for explore issues related to family, love, identity and resilience.
Directed by Louis Choquette, the Franco-Belgian series can count on a compelling narrative which mixes skillfully historical intrigue and cultural relevance. «We were eager to tell the story a very romantic story, inspired by the great literary myths of the 19th century – explained co-producer Aline Panel in a press note – in particular regarding the issue of social classes».
«The feminist theme is present, but it is not the only one” added the other co-producer Estelle Boutière. “Actually, the series is also about empowerment and inclusion. Montmartre is a rare, well-written and prestigious project, for which, in addition to funding, set designers and costume designers capable of working miracles were neededa director capable of conveying the atmosphere of cabaret and actors of a certain importance, including dancers and musicians.”
Thanks to collaboration of the historian Lucie Rondeau du Noyerthe series also stands out for the accuracy of the historical reconstruction: the production design team collected over 700 documentsincluding photographs, paintings, drawings and book extracts. Finally, for the character of Céleste, the authors were inspired by Blanche Cavelli, an artist who went down in history for having performed the first full striptease on March 3, 1894 at number 75 rue des Martyrs, in the Pigalle district of Paris.
The cast of Montmartre: who is Alice Dufour
In his first major role in a television production big budget, Alice Dufour she is married to the actor François Vincentelli and was also a model, gymnast and dancer. Born in 1987 in Saint-Lô, the future actress stood out as French national artistic gymnastics championmodel for magazines and advertising, dancer at Crazy Horse in Paris and artist at Cirque du Soleil.
After making a name for herself in the theater, Alice landed roles in series and films as Hard, Alibi.com, L’Amour (presque) parfait, Super-héros malgré lui And Alphonse. Dramatic comedy starring Jean Dujardinalso available in Italy on Prime Video. Coming soon, the actress will be among the protagonists of Family instincta comedy that tells the story a love triangle that is born during a dinner between exes.
In addition to Alice Dufour, the series can count on the presence of important actors such as Victor Meutelet (Arsène Larcourt) and Claire Romain (Rose Joubert). Among the big names involved in the production also Thibault de Montalembert, famous for the role of Mathias Barneville in the cult series Call my agent!.