Name: Hannah Kendall
Start: 2026-04-23T19:30:00
Location: Columbia University

Columbia University Department of Music

Jacques Demy followed up The Umbrellas of Cherbourg with another musical about missed connections and second chances, this one a more effervescent confection. Twins Delphine and Solange, a dance instructor and a music teacher (played by real-life sisters Catherine Deneuve and Françoise Dorléac), long for big-city life; when a fair comes through their quiet port town, so does the possibility of escape. With its jazzy Michel Legrand score, pastel paradise of costumes, and divine supporting cast (George Chakiris, Grover Dale, Danielle Darrieux, Michel Piccoli, and Gene Kelly), The Young Girls of Rochefort is a tribute to Hollywood optimism from sixties French cinema’s preeminent dreamer.

View trailer here

Walter Frisch and Jane Gaines return to the Maison Française for this final event of the year as a sequel to their lively and informative discussion of The Umbrellas of Cherbourg in May 2025.

Walter Frisch is H. Harold Gumm/Harry and Albert von Tilzer Professor of Music at Columbia University in New York, and an aficionado of the films of Jacques Demy.

Jane M. Gaines is Professor of Film and Media Studies at Columbia University with a deep knowledge of French cinema.

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The Young Girls of Rochefort

Columbia University

British composer Hannah Kendall’s music is marked by striking and often polarizing dynamics and features staggeringly intricate details that encourage further listening. Known for her attentive arrangements and immersive world-building, her work pushes the limits of compositional boundaries. The adventurous International Contemporary Ensemble performs several recent pieces, including the U.S. premiere of a Miller Theatre commission.