After 30 years at the head of the Zénith de Caen, Serge Langeois has retired
The curtain falls on the adventure of Serge Langeois at the head of the Zénith de Caen (Calvados). On July 31, the boss of the theater has now gone “on vacation” as he likes to say. Thirty years of career concludes with the awakening of the Zenith after successive confinements. The Miss France contest and the Orelsan concerts, among others, offered the master of the place a colorful outing.
To “turn the page and write a new book”, Serge Langeois and his wife Nadine also opted for another big change: leaving the Saint-Germain mill, in Fresney-le-Puceux south of Caen, where the couple had took up residence twenty-two years ago. This beautiful building of 800 m2 took on the appearance of a large clearance sale on August 6 and 7. “We are moving to Caen, in a much smaller place so we cannot take everything, slips Serge Langeois. And then, it is not good to live in the past. “In addition to the furniture, the couple sold hundreds of objects taken from the thirty-year career of the former boss of the Zenith.
Some 400 people lined up in front of the mill this Saturday, August 6. A major piece quickly found a buyer: Johnny Hallyday’s autographed bathrobe. “It was a tradition for some artists. I went to get a bathrobe, with the logo of the Zénith embroidered, and I offered them, narrates the longtime director. Sometimes I took an extra bathrobe, signed by the artist, which I kept as a souvenir. The autographed tunics of Véronique Sanson, Michel Sardou, Charles Aznavour, or even that of Alain Delon have thus spent their lives, framed, in the mill.
An auction on October 3
In property, “all objects have a story”. Like a tie, forgotten behind the scenes of the Caen theater by… Nicolas Sarkozy, after his campaign meeting for the 2007 presidential election. “The security service had come to claim it. But we had pretended not to have seen it”, laughs Serge Langeois, collector at heart. Gloves, Lara Fabian’s red-soled shoes, photos, guitars, and even about 200 personality mugs are sold by the young retiree, among many other things. An auction is scheduled for October 3 to extend the big unboxing.
The emblematic boss of the Zénith de Caen ensures that he is parting with all these memories without too much affect: “It was my passion, but a new life is beginning. “Some objects should survive the move, such as” the guitar of Edith Butler, a Quebec artist, which I had recovered at the beginning of my career. We have forged a great friendship with Edith”, recounts Serge Langeois. His wife, Nadine, hopes for her part “a large format photo of Florent Pagny signed”. Pieces that will adorn the couple’s new home in Caen. After thirty years behind the scenes of the show, the time has come “to enjoy cultural life and travel”. Serge Langeois’ summer vacation can begin.