Opéra de Lausanne

Debut at the Opéra de Lausanne.

Virginie Gervaise studied at the Paris school for Applied Arts then did a Master’s in Stage Design at St. Martin’s College in London and at Prague’s D.A.M.U. under the supervision of Pamela Howard and Josef Svoboda.

She created numerous sketches and paintings for opera decors, in particular for Britten’s Peter Grimes de Britten, directed by Reinhart Zimmerman at the Scottish Opera in Glasgow, Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker, with décor by Jurgen Rose, at the Opéra de Paris, Strauss’ Rosenkavalier at the Théâtre du Châtelet, and Die Zauberflöte, directed by Robert Wilson at the Opéra de Paris.

As a stage designer, she has worked with Sulayman Al Bassam’s Zaoum Theatre Company (which she co-founded) for the London Scenofest and the Edinburgh Festival. She has also created sets for the following artists : Karine Saporta, David LaChapelle, Safi Boutella, Airy Routier, Nadia Vonderheyden and Jean-François Sivadier. She has created the costumes for the productions of directors such as Sylvain Maurice (L’adversaire, Don Juan Comes Back from the War, Peer Gynt), Lambert (Music-Hall by Jean-Luc Lagarce) and Célia Houdart (À demi endormi déjà).

Virginie Gervaise has participated in the creations of Jean-François Sivadier for several years, in particular, she created the costumes for La folle journée by Beaumarchais, Brecht’s Life of Galileo, Danton’s Death by Büchner, Puccini’s Madama Butterfly, Wozzeck by Alban Berg, Partage de midi by Paul Claudel, Shakespeare’s King Lear, Mozart’s Nozze di Figaro, La dame de chez Maxim by Georges Feydeau, Bizet’s Carmen and La Traviata by Verdi (Festival d'Aix-en-Provence in 2011).