The Little Prince and the Immersive Experience in the Bassins des Lumières

Last year Scott and I were in Bordeaux and I had come across a mention of a site with an immersive sound and light show. I had seen something like that in the Netflix show “Emily in Paris” with Van Gogh and the show had been in San Francisco, but we didn't see it.

All I thought was, “hey that’s the show on Van Gogh we missed. Let’s check it out.”

I had no idea about the history of the place it was showing in.

The Bassins des Lumières was originally built by the Nazis during World War II to serve as a base for their submarines and was known as the Base Sous-Marine. Construction was done by 6,500 workers, more than a third of which were Spanish Republican prisoners. “…(t)he building is as strong as ever. And with good reason: the Bordeaux submarine base is indestructible. Neither the ravages of time, nor water erosion nor even human ingenuity have been able to bring down this concrete behemoth planted in the heart of the Bacalan district..,” – Turcat, Raphaël. “The Transformation of a Concrete Colossus.” From a submarine base to the Bassins des Lumières: the story of a rehabilitation. Edited by Claude Pommereau, Beaux-Arts & Cie, 2022, p 14.

In 2020, this building reopened after having been transformed from a site used in war into an arts facility with sound and lights throughout. It has 90 video projectors and 80 speakers in multiple areas to showcase an immersive experience with art.

Scott and I bought our tickets online and wanted to be there at the beginning of the day, not knowing how crowded it would become. Thankfully it is not like some of the exhibits in San Francisco museums where you are somewhat treated like cattle prodded to go through a maze. Instead, you enter a darkened room with bridges that opens out into various chambers. Light is reflected off the waters in the bays. You are surrounded by sound and colored light. It is an impressive feat of artistry. You can stay as long as you like and it did not have a feel of being overcrowded.

In the back of the chamber there is an area with bleacher seating. That is welcome so that you can sit down and absorb the sensory imagery surrounding you.

Another place is a former fuel storage tank that allows for people to sit in a circle on the floor and not worry about the various bridges over the watery bays.

Here are some photos that I took from the show "De Vermeer à Van Gogh.”

I wanted to give an explanation about the intense sensorial impact this art venue has before I began talking about the exhibition for The Little Prince. According to an article in Forbes Magazine, it is the most translated book in the world with 480 languages and having sold over 200 million copies. It is thought to be a children's book because the titular character is a child and that it has numerous illustrations. Yet, the profound thoughts and philosophy of life is something that touches adult hearts as well.

Here is a short video and some images from that show that I took.

I found a video posted on YouTube of someone who saw this show in Paris at the Atelier des Lumières. That is a place that does not have watery reflections, just places to sit down on the floor and contemplate the images and sounds that surround you. This video hopefully will give you a sense of the power of the show. In particular, notice the serpent and how scary he looks.

The problem I have with this show is not due to its content, but due to parents not recognizing how powerful this experience is. Small children can be overwhelmed by the imagery and the sounds that they cannot escape. If you noticed in that video from Paris there were cries from a small child, and it is likely that the parents did not remove the child from the room. Because the parents wanted to see the show and they thought this was a show for families.

:Sigh: I remember when my son was young, he could not handle being in line for the bank or the post office. Something that might have taken me 15 minutes or so became untenable for him and I could not remain in line. I knew then that I was not going to subject myself or him to the wait lines at Disney.

Instead we went to Train Town in Sonoma where he was excited to go on a ride on a small train with a stop at a petting zoo. It also had small amusement park rides such as a carousel. It was the perfect level of amusement park excitement for him when he was a small child. He wasn't overwhelmed.

My son was finally taken to Disneyland when he was around 9 years old and that is when he could finally handle lines, waiting, and mostly handle sensory stimulation. I have seen small children crying at a coffee shop, before you even enter Disneyland, and I recognize this is more than they can handle - but I also knew that the parents have invested time and energy to take their children there and they are going to insist on being there the whole day. Regardless of how the child reacts or responds.

Scott and I sought out a place to sit in the back of the site and discovered that the bleachers were almost full. It was also going to be difficult navigating the stairs in the dark, so we chose to sit on an empty bench near the wall. A few minutes later a mother sat down next to me. She was chastising her son for crying. Soon afterwards came the larger than life images of serpents climbing the walls and covering the floor. Those images are scary, even for adults. I was feeling bad for the child and wanted to say to him something like, "I don't like serpents either. They are scary.” But I didn't feel confident enough with my French to say that to him, I also didn't know what his mother would say to me - a stranger - for talking to her son.

Her son looked to be around three years old, and she also had a daughter with her that looked like she was two years old. The daughter was like a bird flitting around the place and not feeling the need to stay near her mother or brother. At one point I saw a family moving in front of us trying to find someplace to sit down and they did not see the little girl in the dark. She fell and then started to cry. The mother didn't see any of this and began wondering where her daughter was.

This family was a small microcosm of the energy in the room which was out-of-control and almost mayhem. Because parents are trying to do something nice for their children, but may not be as attuned to what the child can handle.

The story of the Little Prince is wonderful and the sound and light show is impressive, but I don't think children who aren't old enough to actually read and understand the story themselves should be brought to see this immersive experience. Seeing the words "Síl vous plait, dessiner un mouton.” "Please, draw me a sheep.” Helps to ground the images with the story as it unfolds in front of your eyes. Without understanding the story and recognizing how it is being told, this immersive experience is too powerful. Especially for little children.