Paris tries to outshine protests with Christmas lights and a celebrity
A luxury avenue turns to Cate Blanchett and festive displays to recover from unrest.
The story
The Champs-Élysées is preparing for the holiday season with new Christmas lights and a market, hoping to attract crowds after recent protests. Cate Blanchett will help turn on the lights, and security is being increased.
Source: wwd.com
Our reading
The Champs-Élysées is turning to Cate Blanchett to switch on 32 miles of Christmas lights, as if a film star’s presence could somehow neutralize the chaos of recent protests. It’s a curious mix of glamour and grit, where the same avenue that saw looted stores and boarded-up windows now needs a celebrity to make it feel safe again.
The plan is to lure back shoppers with a five-minute light show set to classical music, while also hiring 26 security guards for the Christmas market. It’s like the city is trying to outshine the unrest with spectacle, as if the solution to social tension is more glitter and fewer traffic jams.
It’s not just about the lights anymore—it’s about proving that Paris can still be a place where people want to spend their money, even if the streets are still a little bruised from the last round of protests.
