On Friday at 8 p.m., Sylvie Vartan will perform the kick-off to her farewell to the stage. Three concerts at the Palais des Sports followed by three more at the Palais des Congrès at the end of January. The “last of the last” will take place on Sunday January 26, 2025. “I know it’s going to be hard to say goodbye to my fans and not break down in tears. I know that there will be people in the room who have followed me since the 1960s, and it’s very emotional for me to say goodbye to them. But when the time comes, you have to know when to stop!”she confides to Benoit Cachin in My life from stage to stagea beautiful 290-page book full of anecdotes, just published by Gründ (40 euros). As Sylvie Vartan won’t be touring the regions, this last great show will be captured for projection on the big screen. The date of this special screening and the participating cinemas have not yet been announced.

For this final tour, which she intends to be “flamboyant”, she will be on stage for 2 hours 30 minutes. With two surprise guests per evening. On stage, she will be accompanied by eleven musicians, four backing singers and seven dancers. The show, choreographed by Rehda, is structured around five tableaux: Johnny, the Beatles, dancing, Las Vegas and France. Each of these moments will be preceded by a few minutes of video featuring Sylvie with highlights from her sixty-year career. The set list will be a “best of” with all the hits from 1961 to the present day: Loco-Motion La plus belle pour aller danser, Si je chante, Tous mes copains, Par amour, La Maritza, Comme un garçon, Qu’est ce qui fait pleurer les blondes, L’Amour c’est comme une cigarette…

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A substantial part of the show will be devoted to the 1960s, with Sylvie singing in her deepest voice a song by Johnny Hallyday. The rocker will not appear as a hologram as he did at the Grand Rex, but he will be present in images behind the singer. There will be numerous costume changes, from a tuxedo with hat to a green sequined sheath. All signed by Stéphane Rolland. Jacques Rouveyrollis, the legendary lighting designer and long-time faithful, will be responsible for the lighting.

Tony Scotti, his protector for 42 years

Moments before the curtain opens, Tony Scotti takes his place behind the stage control, gazing down on his wife and artist as he has done for the past 42 years. “In October 1981, he attended Sylvie’s Palais des Sports from afar. No one knew that they had met in Japan six months earlier, recounts Benoit Cachin. An expert journalist on French chanson, he has devoted four books to Vartan, including 700 pages on her 1,500 songs, another on her discography and this latest dedicated to her 60 years on stage. A beautiful and precious book, because before Tony Scotti’s arrival, Sylvie’s legendary concerts were not all filmed, or were filmed in poor quality”.Their first major collaboration dates back to 1982 in Las Vegas. One of Tony’s ideas was to have him sing a medley of American standards”, points out Benoit Cachin. A key figure in Sylvie Vartan’s shows, this powerful American producer was born in the United States to a family of Italian origin. He started out as an actor and singer before organizing concerts for some of the world’s biggest stars. The incredible list of these legends ranges from Tina Turner and Barbra Streisand to James Brown and Abba.

With Johnny, life was rock’n’roll. With Tony, Sylvie found her double. In her private life, as in her profession, Sylvie Vartan has carried others at arm’s length, notably raising her son, David Hallyday, alone. With Tony, she was finally able to lay her head on a shoulder of trust. At the time of their meeting, she hadn’t stopped for two decades. For the only time in her sixty-year career, she stopped performing for six years. She left the stage to David before returning in 1990 with a very special concert. A few months after the fall of the Iron Curtain, she performed in Sofia, Bulgariawhere she was born.

Last June, she and Tony celebrated their fortieth wedding anniversary. These two love each other as much as the first day. While all their family and friends are expected in Paris, their two-year-old great-grandson Harrisson may be coming too. This will be his first and last chance to see his beloved great-grandmother on stage. Under the watchful eye of Didier, the couple’s polyglot confidant and bodyguard, the little boy will still be able to play with their bichon. Muffin.

In the history of showbiz in France, Sylvie Vartan’s shows have a special place. Exactly like those of Johnny Hallyday and Mylène Farmer. She made her debut at the Olympia in 1961, twisting with Frankie Jordan. They opened for Gilbert Bécaud, who was a huge star. Bruno Coquatrix, director of Olympia asked her to come back a few days later for three weeks in a row, opening for British rocker Vince Taylor. She was 17 years old, a ravishing blonde with pouty lips. Backstage, Johnny Hallyday falls head over heels in love. Gilbert Bécaud takes the young girl on tour. Her brother Eddie Vartan, a great musician, accompanied her. In 1963, she toured with the stars of the day, culminating in the famous concert at the Place de la Nation in front of 200,000 young people. The following year, she celebrated her twentieth birthday with the Beatles at the legendary Olympia. In 1965, she embarked on her first world tour. She was presented to Queen Elizabeth II after her London concert, and became a household name. idol in Japan. A status she still holds today. In Tokyo, many record shops still feature her vinyl. As if she were Taylor Swift. Incredible but true.

“From her 1968 Olympia, she performed with dancers, points out Benoit Cachin. The big turning point came in 1975 when she imported the great American shows to France. Conceived as musicals with 20-minute tableaux, they caused a sensation.” And he adds: “While Line Renaud’s return from Las Vegas revived staircases, feathers, boys in suits and showgirls, her songs were classics. Sylvie was the first to sing and dance rock and pop surrounded by dancers with high-flying choreography.” These over-the-top shows lasted from 1974 to 2004. For the next two decades, Vartan specialized in singing tours. She returned to the Olympia and performed in chic venues such as Pleyel. No two of her shows are alike. In 2019, she is designing a 100% Johnny Hallyday tribute concert. The most recent at the Théâtre Édouard VII was a piano-voice concert, not necessarily very joyful, but the real fans loved it. Knowing her, her farewell is bound to be grandiose. This Friday evening, the Figaro will be in the audience. Read the report this weekend.