Vers les Arts

Vers les Arts: The Artistic Invitation of Saint-Hilaire-de-Riez

Since 2002, the Vers les Arts festival has established itself as one of the highlights of the summer in Saint-Hilaire-de-Riez, a seaside resort on the Vendée coast. For three days in mid-August, the Cour de Baisse, an old farm nestled between a state forest and the Breton marsh, transforms into a true open-air artistic village where jugglers, acrobats, dancers, actors, and musicians cross paths.

A Universe Reinvented Each Year

One of the festival's signatures lies in the complete transformation of the site by a team of visual artists and set designers. Each edition offers a new visual universe: ephemeral decors, plastic installations, and poetic arrangements create an immersive experience where every corner of the Cour de Baisse holds a surprise. This artistic dimension distinguishes Vers les Arts from other performing arts festivals and makes it a true open-air exhibition.

A Multidisciplinary and Demanding Program

The Vers les Arts program brings together about twenty performances by fifteen companies. Street arts, contemporary circus, dance, street theater, clown, and contemporary music follow one another from the afternoon until midnight. The festival showcases quirky, poetic, and participatory forms: karaoke in the shower, roving fanfares, mime-clown shows, or politico-metaphysical fables punctuate the evenings in a joyful effervescence.

A Free and Friendly Festival

All shows and concerts at Vers les Arts are offered free of charge, in a spirit of cultural democratization dear to the organizers. Refreshments, on-site catering, and free shuttles from the town center and campsites complete the facilities for optimal festival-goer comfort.

At the Heart of the La Déferlante Network

Vers les Arts is an integral part of the La Déferlante, la vague à l'art network, which livens up the Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie region with street performances and artistic events throughout the summer. This integration into a territorial cultural network enhances the richness of the programming and allows companies to perform in several towns along the Vendée coast.