It was the 16th French Soirée held at my place that Sunday 1st of December 2024, for my students and partners to celebrate once more a whole year of learning this beautiful and complex language Le Français. I must admit that each one of these soirées leaves its own unique imprint, weaves its own magical ambience thanks to the members’ participation and contribution.
At the end of each of these evenings, we are left blown away by the scope and variety of French items presented by a generous and dedicated group of individuals, by the colourful spread of tantalising food items, the decadent deserts, the well-presented poetry and songs, all in a spirit of conviviality. Thus, Soirée of 2024 was no exception to the preceding ones, except that this one had all of us scampering indoors as heaven opened, just as we finished the third item of the program. Plan B came into action quickly with everyone carrying their chairs indoors where the best informal gathering unfolded. The rain didn’t damper the organisation and participation of all. On the contrary it brought its members closer together in an unforgettable experience of a lifetime.
The soirée unwrapped softly its layers of cultural bliss throughout the evening, opening up with a fun-filled “breaking the ice” game – Jeu d’autographes- in French, prepared and organized by Maggie, setting the mood for an exciting evening. From there, the participants were treated to a moving live song:” Je vole” of Louanne Emera, sung by our talented music-teacher- guest, Hollie, leading the stage to the famous fabulist Jean de la Fontaine’s fable – Le Corbeau et le Renard-, vividly presented by Paige, pausing alongside renowned surrealist poet Jacques Prevert with two of his well-known poems: Déjeuner du matin -movingly executed by Veronica, followed by- Chanson – beautifully shared by Christine. The spell of poetry was momentarily interrupted to keep the mind buzzing with two pictorial quizzes and a written one masterly prepared by Paul, all with much fun and laughter.
Love under all its forms pursued its resonance throughout the evening with Guillaume Apollinaire surrealist poem- Le Pont Mirabeau– with Linda confidently taking us along the Seine, moving on to the romantic Alfred de Vigny with an extract of his profound poem – La mort du Loup- recited by Cecil with great poignancy, giving suit to Edith Piaf’s iconic song – L’Hymne à L’Amour – whose enunciated lyrics by Kerry and Dianne, moved us while the violin echoed the ebb and flow of love. On another love beat, the bohemian lifestyle of renowned singer and poet, Charles Aznavour, unravelled through the streets of Montmartre with –La Bohême –whose recited lyrics came alive with Pam and Karin, accompanied by a vibrant rendition on the piano and intermittent chorus. Love triumphed with an endearing song of poet and songwriter, Jean-Yves Duteil: Prendre un enfant par la main-joined by everyone,whose momentous melody continued to make our heart sing well beyond its final note.
This memorable night wrapped up as usual, in a bouquet of fireworks, with our well-known Christmas songs: Vive le Vent et Mon beau Sapin with an encore of an Australian version of EdithPiaf’s – La vie en Rose -, en français bien sûr, all energetically sung by the audience, accompanied by our two in-house professional musicians, Peter and Ken, on the violin and piano respectively.
Once again, my sincere thanks to everyone for your dedication to learning, your enthusiasm in participating in all activities, your generous spread of food and your devotion to the success of a very special evening whose magic bound us together, in a shared moment of togetherness, joy and laughter, kindling in our hearts the true Christmas spirit.
Marie-Anne
French Lessons Perth 
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