Established in 1869, the house was at the height of its fame and popularity from the 1890s'
Belle Époque through the 1920s'
Années folles. The institution is still in business, and is always a strong symbol of French and Parisian life.
History
It opened on 2 May 1869 as the
Folies Trévise, with fare including operettes,
opéra comique(comic opera), popular songs, and gymnastics. It became the Folies Bergère on 13 September 1872, named after a nearby street, the
rue Bergère ("bergère" means "shepherdess").
In 1886,
Édouard Marchand conceived a new genre of entertainment for the Folies Bergère: the
music-hall review. Women would be the heart of Marchand's concept for the Folies. In the early 1890s, the
American dancer
Loie Fuller starred at the Folies Bergère. In 1902, illness forced Marchand to leave after 16 years.

Josephine Baker in a banana skirt from the Folies Bergère production
Un Vent de Folie
In 1918,
Paul Derval (1880–1966) made his mark on the review. His reviews were to feature extravagant costumes, sets and effects, and his "small nude women". Derval's small nude women would become the hallmark of the Folies. During his 48 years at the Folies, he launched the careers of many French stars including
Maurice Chevalier,
Mistinguett,
Josephine Baker,
Fernandel and many others. In 1926,
Josephine Baker, an
African-American expatriate singer, dancer, and entertainer, became an overnight sensation at the Folies Bergère when she performed the
Danse sauvage, wearing a costume consisting of a skirt made of a string of artificial bananas and little else. Her
erotic dancing and near nude performances were renowned. The
Folies Bergère catered to popular taste. Shows featured elaborate costumes; the women's were frequently revealing, practically leaving them naked, and shows often contained a good deal of
nudity. Shows also played up the "exoticness" of persons and objects from other cultures, obliging the Parisian fascination with the
négritude of the 1920s.
In 1936, Derval brought
Josephine Baker from
New York to lead the review
En Super Folies. Michel Gyarmathy, a young Hungarian arrived from
Balassagyarmat, his hometown, designed the poster for
En Super Folies, a show starring Josephine Baker in 1936. This began a long love story between Michel Gyarmathy, Paris, the Folies Bergère andthe public of the whole world which lasted 56 years. The funeral of Paul Derval was held on 20 May 1966. He was 86 and had reigned supreme over the most celebrated music hall in the world. His wife Antonia, supported by Michel Gyarmathy, succeeded him. In August 1974, the Folies Antonia Derval passed on the direction of the business to Hélène Martini, the empress of the night (25 years earlier she had been a showgirl in the revues). This new mistress of the house reverted to the original concept to maintain the continued existence of the last music hall which remained faithful to the tradition.
Since 2006, the Folies Bergère has presented some musical productions with stage entertainment likeCabaret (2006–2008) or Zorro the Musical (2009–2010).