The singularity of the Café de la Gare

In the context of the 1968 Paris student riots, it was not out-of-the-ordinary that the Café de la Gare café-théâtre was able to exist as a place where people, otherwise destined to be unemployed for life, could eventually be in charge of a theatre and survive financially without working. This was a political vision which in any case oversaw the construction of the Café de la Gare. Its functioning and long-lasting success remain, nonetheless, surprising. Systematically opposing any existing rule, the Café de la Gare made unique choices with regard to conditions necessary for creativity. For example, talent was judged to be based on the presence of random individuals ; the absence of constraints encouraged creativity ; the idea that anyone could possibly be in charge was formally dispelled ; and there were no rules for the job and no teachers. With hindsight, the Café de la Gare’s success was based on a dual mystery : that of how individuals behave when one abolishes existing rules, and the nature of collective responses when one takes away all threats of punishment.