In the year of Mont Saint Michel Abbey’s 1,000th anniversary celebrations, as visitor numbers hit an all-time high, we designed and staged this immersive stroll as a counterpoint to the frenetic activity on the site, as a hiatus in today’s busy and restless world.
The technological installations, which had to be carefully concealed within the confines of the location, took visitors on a physical, spiritual and emotional journey of elevation to the highest reaches of the so-called Wonder of the Western World. The chancel of the abbey church underwent a metamorphosis before visitors’ eyes, fostering a moment of timeless introspection on universal values.
Production
Amaclio Productions
Original concept
Martin Arnaud
Artistic production
Les Petits Français
Talents
Claudio Cavallari, Visual Artist
Pierre Caillot, Composer
Pascal Lengagne, Composer
Philippe Villar, Composer
Jérôme Deschamps, Lighting Designer
Technical services
Novelty France
ETC Audiovisuel
Atria Création
Centre des Monuments Nationaux
French government body in charge of the upkeep of Mont-Saint-Michel
Production
Amaclio Productions
Original concept
Martin Arnaud
Artistic production
Les Petits Français
Talents
Claudio Cavallari, Visual Artist
Pierre Caillot, Composer
Pascal Lengagne, Composer
Philippe Villar, Composer
Jérôme Deschamps, Lighting Designer
Technical services
Novelty France
ETC Audiovisuel
Atria Création
Centre des Monuments Nationaux
French government body in charge of the upkeep of Mont-Saint-Michel
This was the second edition of our collaboration with Amaclio Productions at Mont Saint Michel, the first, in 2022, having given visitors an insight into the lives of the monastery’s monks. This time we decided to put the public to the test, by following a creative process of elevation conducive to contemplation. We used lights to magnify the buildings, sound to encourage silence and projections to visually transform the surroundings, we created an intimate emotional pace rising into a crescendo over the course of 10 chapters as visitors strolled around the abbey in their own time.
Despite the obstacles we were faced with – limits on equipment, which needed to be airlifted in, the fact that the site had to be kept free of obstructions, and that working hours were restricted by daytime operations and monastic life – we once again pulled off the mission entrusted to us, deploying technology in the interests of content and emotion. During the two summer months that the show ran, much to our delight, over 47,000 spectators accepted the invitation to embark on a physical and spiritual elevation.