The cabaret Chez Michou, an emblematic place of Parisian nightlife, placed in compulsory liquidation

Having ceased payments since the end of June, the Chez Michou cabaret had stopped producing the shows that had given it its identity for nearly seventy years. The establishment has now been placed in receivership.

The famous drag cabaret Chez Michou, a hotspot of Parisian nightlife since 1956, was placed in receivership by the Paris commercial court on Tuesday, July 16, the lawyer for the current manager, Catherine Catty-Jacquart, announced to AFP. In difficulty since the death of the founder in January 2020, the cabaret had been insolvent since the end of June.

The 22 employees, artists and room staff, some of whom had nearly thirty years of seniority, will be made redundant within two weeks. “A court-appointed receiver will receive any offers to purchase the business, in the hope that the Michou spirit will continue,” indicated Maître David Brami. Some of the employees are trying to set up a cooperative production company (SCOP) project in order to present a takeover offer. “It’s heartbreaking, but after several years of difficulties, we had to face the facts”reacted Catherine Catty-Jacquart, niece of Michel Catty known as Michou.

The iconic founder, nicknamed “the blue prince of Montmartre”, inspired in the 1970s The Mad Cage to Jean Poiret. Among the most popular icons of Parisian nights, Michou and his cabaret had become French symbols, as popular as the Moulin Rouge, the Lido and the Crazy Horse. A few days before the cabaret’s 68th anniversary, the last performance took place on June 30.

The cradle of drag and the smallest cabaret in Paris, Chez Michou presented a dinner show with extravagant performers nicknamed the “Michettes”, imitating song and film stars like Sylvie Vartan, Annie Girardot, Johnny Hallyday, Mireille Mathieu and Dalida.

Having been in deficit for three years, the cabaret was faced, according to its director, “to strikes, demonstrations and parking problems, especially for coaches”, causing a collapse in bookings. Drag queen shows and transvestite shows have, however, seen a resurgence of interest in recent years, driven by establishments that have been able to focus more on a younger audience, such as Madame Arthur, also located in Montmartre.

In his memoirs published in 2017, Michou had also estimated that his cabaret should not survive him. “I want this house to disappear with me. It may sound pretentious, but the cabaret will not survive me,” he said then. A few months before his death, he finally changed his mind under pressure from “Michettes”.