Francofolies New York Tickets

The line up of performers was fabulous, the use of the screens as the backdrop to the stage with photo, video, newspaper clippings was stunning & powerful. I thoroughly enjoyed the whole concert.

One of the best experiences ever. Must see for French music enthusiasts.

Sound was subpar. From cracks and reverb to singers that could be barely heard. Maybe the sound was optimized for TV recording, or maybe upper balcony sound is simply not good at the Beacon. Enjoyed the show anyway. Thanks to Francois-Xavier for his good humor and performance.

If the show was called for 7:30, why did it start past 8 PM? I think it should have been 50/50 in English and French. Not everyone in in the audience was French

We hadn't been told that this was going to be filmed for TV. It actually was a (not even live) TV show recording, and we were the (paying) audience. The master of ceremony was reading a prompter, and so were the artists while singing!!! They were coming on and off stage rapidly, one after the other, barely acknowledging our presence. Some of them like Olivia Ruiz even looked really annoyed like they didn't want to be there. A total lack of fluidity, cohesion and warmth. Some English-speaking artists were singing in French and it was pretty obvious that they had no clue what the lyrics were about. Total lack of spontaneity and sincerity. In a word, this was just the recording of a TV show and a commercial operation. I felt tricked and used. I wish I had known and asked for a refund before the show like apparently many others did. What saved the evening was that the lineup was great, and most artists delivered top notch vocal performances. We got to give them credit for that. Plus, the Edith Piaf songs are truly amazing, and just hearing them sang by great artists made my night.

I was excited to bring my mother (who loves Edith Piaf, and actually saw her years ago) to this performance. It was an early birthday present. And it was disappointing. When we arrived, the first thing we see is that Charles Aznavour will not be performing. No reason, just a poster informing us that he would not be there and that we could get refunds if we wanted. Well, we were there and decided it would be nice anyway. The show had many "technical" and other difficulties, and it had the overall feel of a show that had been put together at the last minute and/or not well rehearsed. Not all of the singers lived up to expectations either. The worst was hearing my mother, whom I was so excited to bring, state that it had been "okay" and rated it "mediocre."

Whlle we thought that the presentation of the various artists was first class, and the orchestra was exceptional, we thought it was the height of arrogance for the MC to ignore the fact that this performance was in New York and the majority of the audience did not speak French and could not understand his comments in introducing the various artists. It made the overall experience less enjoyable and would have been quite easy for him to translate his remarks (or to have a translation on a screen).

We were very much disappointed by this show. First of, Charles Aznavour could not make it, and we had a total stranger as an MC, who was trying too hard to make jokes to introduce every artist. On top of it, this representation was filmed for television, hence a lot of cameras on crane were constantly obstructing the view to take shots. All in all, the quality of the performers was very inconsistent, and it was obvious that they never got a chance to rehearse the show from beginning to end together. There was also no spark between the singers and the musicians. I wish we were told prior to buying the tickets that the show would be recorded, it felt more like we were on a TV set rather than at the Beacon theatre. Worse part is it cost us 90$ a pop.

Wonderful performances ! I hope they return next year, and the years after that !'

Some of the singers were really good, but overall the event was poorly put together, Performers that were advertised did not appear and no explanation. Only found out after I had made final purchase and printed the tickets that it was obstructed view, when I looked at the seat chart beforehand there was no notice about obstructed view, if it had I would not have purchased, maybe that was intention!!!!

After starting forty minutes late, it quickly became clear that the audience was simply a prop for the taping of a French TV show. There was a rotating camera on an extended boom swinging back and forth constantly, over the audience and in front of the stage, blocking the view. Several people left early after it became clear that the camera interference was not going to stop. We finally left as well, greatly disappointed. When we bought the tickets, there was no mention that the audience would have to fight to see the stage. Really, this was false advertising and did a disservice to a great icon.

Though the reason I bought tickets was to see Marianne Faithfull and she did not appear, the remaining talent was stellar and well worth seeing.

Unique event with no lack of talent among the 20 performers.

The singers were wonderful. The negative aspect was that the many of the performers seemed so stiff and animated. The show began very late, and was so disorganized. The host Charles Aznavour's name was used to entice us to come as he never showed up! Julien Clerc didn't show up either. So surprising regarding Aznavour as he was close to Edith Piaf. Not sure if this was the problem of the Beacon Theater or the organization who put this show together. I would definitely not attend if another show such as this was run by the same people.

The event started a half hour late. I sat in the balcony and my view was obscured by camera cranes. The images at the back of the stage were mostly not visible because of the angle and overhangs at the front of the stage. I didn't know that the intros would be mostly in French, which I don't understand. And two of the main attractions--Charles Aznavour and Marianne Faithful--didn't show. Harry Connick Jr. was barely there. That said, some of the musical performers were good, though others unwittingly demonstrated with their harsh or character-less voices why Edith Piaf was so great. Some other members of the audience seemed to be more familiar with the performers than I was, and some understood French and laughed in places where I would have liked to be in on the joke.

Great performances, but...would have appreciated if the lead spoke English and not led the entire show in French. I was not aware that it was filmed for the French television and advanced notice would have been appreciated to manage expectations.

There appeared to have been no rehersal. One singer said: Do I go this way out? Another singer had to wait until the sound from the guitar was not echoing. Madelyn Peyroux was shoved to the background at the finale. All in all, surprisingly poor theatre.