The weather is fine on the Place de l'Hotel de Ville on Friday April 2.
In spite of a small dry and cold wind, some of the demonstrators, gathered around the scene, are in T-shirts or light wool.
Since the beginning of the occupation of the theaters, on March 4, the "Fridays of anger", weekly meetings initiated by the CGT Spectacle, are the occasion for intermittents to claim, among other demands, a new white year , as well as the extension of their status to tourism and catering professionals.
To read also: Roselyne Bachelot considers “useless” and “dangerous” the occupation of theaters
A street concert punctuates the interventions of union representatives and professionals.
Greatly absent from their recriminations, the announcements of Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday evening leave the participants unmoved.
The Head of State quickly mentioned a possible reopening of places of culture from mid-May.
According to the consultations undertaken at the Ministry of Culture, a scenario in four stages seems to be emerging.
Some rooms could reopen with a restricted audience.
The gauge would drop from one third of spectators to two thirds a month later, reaching 100% in early July.
Only then would major musical events, such as festivals, be considered.
This plan, like the one being developed for restaurants, would obviously be subject to a massive decrease in contamination.
But the demonstrators in the Town Hall square hardly believe it.
All have in mind the promises of reopening launched by the government in December and January.
Promises never followed through.
A lot of people don't want to be vaccinated.
If this applies, we will de facto reduce the number of our entries.
How should we react if, within the same family, some members are vaccinated and others are not?
Mehdi, museum employee
“We understand where the priorities are”,
explains Jan, trumpeter and member of the troupe.
This German of origin, intermittent of the spectacle for twenty-five years, is wary of the government word, which it sweeps away with the back of the hand.
“I'm afraid we won't be able to reopen within a month.
It seems untenable to me. "
His skepticism is widely shared among the audience present.
"Nobody believes it!"
exclaims Mehdi.
Employed at the Musée Grévin, he is worried about the potential establishment of a health passport which would condition access to cultural places.
Roselyne Bachelot expressed her reservations about the process, but it is already being tested in several countries.
“A lot of people don't want to be vaccinated.
If the vaccine passport is put in place, we will in fact reduce the number of our entries,
he fears
.
How should we react if, within the same family, some members are vaccinated and others are not?
We are not here to police. ”
Small productions sacrificed in favor of big ones
If the reopening of cultural venues is an essential step, the experience of last year has shown that not all problems will go away overnight.
Especially since the cultural economy has already been strongly impacted by the pandemic.
"Within my group, we have lost 500 million euros,
" Mehdi explains.
It will take us 10 years to return to the pre-crisis level.
In addition, we received bonuses based on the number of tickets sold.
In 2020, we might as well say that we had nothing. "
Next to him, Jef, an actor officially retired but still active, is worried about the accumulation of theatrical productions which have not known the curtain to rise.
“A lot of shows couldn't be played.
This will create a traffic jam when reopening, he
judges.
Priority will then be given to big performances.
I already know of two shows that happened in September 2020. They had been scheduled for two years but had to give way. ”
On the stage, in front of the Town Hall, Denis Gravouil, secretary general of the CGT Spectacle, militates for the extension of the white year and the withdrawal of the reform of unemployment insurance, as he also had it. claimed during the Caesar ceremony.
His speech becomes more preoccupied when he leaves the assembly.
“People here haven't worked for a year.
Some have had to rent or sell their homes.
Others are forced to change jobs, ”he
protested, emphasizing the psychological problems that this lack of activity causes.
"Not seeing the public, being treated as non-essentials, suffering the multiple cancellations ..."
The grievances add to the desperation.
To read also: "He could no longer bear the cancellations of concerts": the harpsichordist François Grenier put an end to his days
The red line of the white year
According to the trade unionist, the reopening of places of culture, even if it was rapid, will not allow intermittent workers to immediately find work and replenish the stock of working hours which gives them their rights.
"It will take us at least a year to work normally and two years to recover from the period,"
he said.
This is why everyone is calling for a new “white year”, although the Ministry of Labor does not hear it that way.
“On Friday April 26, we had a meeting with Élisabeth Borne's chief of staff.
He explained to us that extending the white year by one year was a red line that they would not cross
,
”
confides the union representative, whose irritation is palpable.
A report has been commissioned and will be submitted early next week to the Ministers of Culture and Labor.
Despite the still gloomy outlook for the sector, solutions do exist.
Denis Gravouil is convinced of this.
"We know that the Covid exists, we are lucid,"
explains the trade unionist.
But we must find other places likely to welcome us.
We could play in the open air or under marquees for example.
Some town halls have already implemented this type of process.
The State should organize itself with the local communities, that there be coordination on this point.
We want to find social ties. ”
