La Nuit des musées de Lausanne et Pully 2026
To mark the 25th edition of the Nuit des musées de Lausanne et Pully, the SAPA Foundation invites you to a festive, participatory, and intergenerational programme. Discover the Swiss Archive of the Performing Arts in a variety of ways that are accessible to all.
Festival Programme
Exhibitions
LE MASQUE MAUDIT
The adventure exhibition that only comes to life with you
Feu Follet needs your help to recover his memory and find out who cast a spell on him! This interactive exhibition adventure offers a completely new insight into the collections preserved at SAPA. A take-home experience: during the visit, a companion booklet is gradually created, holding a surprise at the end.
Time: 2:00 PM – 12:00 AM | Duration: 30 mins, ongoing
DANSER EN COULEURS
100 Years of the Margaret Morris Method
Immerse yourself in a century full of movement, creativity, and the sharing of knowledge. Through archival documents, photographs, films, and objects, the exhibition highlights the vibrant world of the Margaret Morris Method and its living legacy, which has also been carried forward in Switzerland since 1926.
Time: 2:00 PM – 12:00 AM, ongoing
Events and workshops
PERFORMANCE "DANSER EN COULEURS"
Discover the Margaret Morris Method during a guided tour of the exhibition. Afterwards, the f’ar invites you to a performance that moves through the spaces and was created in dialogue with the exhibition "Rhône vivant ! Une exploration sensible du fleuve Rhône." An invitation to experience movement, space, and our connection with all living things in a new way.
Time: 2:30 PM | Duration: 60 mins
LARGE-SCALE ORIGAMI
In this workshop, old large-format posters from the SAPA Foundation's archives are transformed into exceptionally large origami artworks.
For adults and children aged 6 and over when accompanied.
Times: 4:00 PM and 8:00 PM | Duration: 60 mins., ongoing | Limited seating
A BRIEF ENCOUNTER WITH AN ARCHIVAL ITEM
Let's uncover the secrets of an archival item from the performing arts together: SAPA invites you to a personal encounter with a document or object that has stood the test of time.
Times: 5:00 PM, 7:45 PM, and 9:15 PM | Duration: 15 min. | Limited seating
THE WORKSHOP OF FANTASTICAL ARCHIVAL MATERIALS
Some objects become our personal treasures – and it would be a shame if their stories were lost! SAPA invites you to create the most fantastical archival items ever seen. All creations will then be displayed in the SAPA showcase and subsequently preserved just like real archival pieces.
For adults and children aged 6 and over when accompanied.
Time: 5:15 PM | Duration: 60 mins | Limited seating
LES SOUFFLEURS DE TEMPS – FILM SCREENING AND Q&A
Seven documents and objects transform into time whisperers, telling their secret stories on screen – accompanied by music and in 3D. Who would have thought that archival materials could experience such exciting adventures? Afterwards, there will be an opportunity to meet the three artists who created the project.
Time: 6:30 PM | Duration: 60 mins
BOOK AND POSTER EXCHANGE
Give our books and posters a new lease of life! SAPA's Lausanne library and collection are getting a fresh new look. To mark the occasion, we are giving away a selection of our books and posters on the subject of dance free of charge. Discover classics and curiosities from the past and present, and take your finds home with you.
Time: 21:30–00:00, ongoing
A pop-up for the 25th anniversary of Museum Night
To mark its 25th edition, the Museum Night is moving right into the city centre with a temporary pop-up. A photographic exhibition by Aline Paley highlights the diversity of the participating institutions. Each museum presents an object or work from its collection that explores the theme of "celebrations". SAPA is represented with an item from its collections. Come along and discover what it is!
Date: 3–26 September
Opening hours: Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, 2:00 PM – 7:00 PM; Saturday, 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM
Free admission
Location: Rue du Petit-Chêne 36, Lausanne
