France: woke theater faces bankruptcy after being invaded by immigrants who were invited to an event

The Gaîté Lyrique theater in Paris, renowned for its 'woke' shows and exhibitions, was invaded by at least 300 illegal African immigrants after they were invited for a free event five weeks ago, in which they talked about welcoming "refugees."

At the end of the event, the invaders refused to leave the theater's premises. Those in charge of the performance hall, a historic building located in Paris' exclusive 3rd arrondissement, have canceled all its programming.

The invasion was executed by the leftist group Jeunes du Parc de Belleville, which has defended the act on its social networks and promoted mobilizations in favor of the invasion.

Meanwhile, still occupied, the progressive theater now faces bankruptcy after weeks of no revenue from ticket sales: it canceled all performances until at least Jan. 24. A spokesman for the theater told the Daily Mail that the estimated cost of the cancellations of private and public events is "several hundred thousand euros in direct losses."

"The theatre's income model - which is 70 per cent based on ticket sales and 30 per cent on subsidies - has collapsed," management highlighted to the media.

It was also learned that businesses near the Gaîté Lyrique have complained about the losses generated by the takeover of the theater. A bistro next to the theater, popular for after-show drinks, has reported so far 30,000 euros in lost revenue.

But, moreover, the theater assured that it will not pursue any action to evict the invaders. On the contrary, it demands that the State find a place where illegal immigrants can take refuge. In that sense, the directive of the art center went even further and defended the invasion:

"One month of occupation and still no concrete housing proposal from the State or the city of Paris to house the people gathered in the Belleville Park Youth Collective who occupy the Gaîté Lyrique. The Gaîté Lyrique regrets the suddenness of this occupation, but recalls the legitimacy of the collective's demand to obtain a roof over the heads of these, now, 300 people," the theater wrote in a statement.

The board acknowledged that the number of occupants sleeping at Gaîté Lyrique continues to rise. "Sanitary conditions are deteriorating day by day and the teams are facing this situation alone. Although this occupation persists, it is unthinkable that Gaîté Lyrique would throw these people out on the street in the middle of winter."

Although the migrants claim to be minors, who would be considered unaccompanied minors and would be entitled to housing and assistance from the authorities, local officials have claimed in the group there are adults who had been sleeping in the streets before the seizure of the theater.