Le Printemps des Comédiens in the sights of the Regional Chamber of Accounts for “significant dysfunctions”

The Regional Chamber of Accounts (CRC) of Occitanie pinpointed the financial situation on Monday “worrying” of the Montpellier theater festival “The Spring of Comedians”one of the most important in France, and denounced “significant management and control dysfunctions”.

“The management of the association Le Printemps des comedians highlights several notable dysfunctions which were favored by a certain erasure of governance bodies for the benefit of the director alone”the man of the theater Jean Varela, who directed the institution from 2011 to the end of 2025, indicates the CRC in a report initiated by a report from the president of the Hérault departmental council.

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“Thus, without having the necessary powers and delegations, the director has concentrated a large part of the decision-making. In this context, many expenses prove insufficiently justified”adds the financial jurisdiction, whose report covers the period 2019-2024.

Particularly targeted expenses and production

The CRC cites as an example “two conventional ruptures” for a total amount of 143,000 euros signed by the director, as well as the budgets “not very detailed” of two major productions: 720,529 euros concerning After the rehearsal/Persona by Ivo van Hove in 2023 and 911,517 euros for Berenicecreated in 2024 by Romeo Castellucci in Montpellier with Isabelle Huppert.

The association is “structurally deficit”underlined during a press conference the president of the CRC, Valérie Renet, emphasizing that the budget “artistic” went from 40% to 30% of the total budget over the period covered.

However, the Printemps des Comédiens benefited over this six-year period from a “significant public support of 12.8 million euros (department, Métropole de Montpellier, State and region), but these authorities did not fully exercise their role of control”, also underlines the CRC.

Announcing the departure of Jean Varela in December 2025, the Metropolis then simply indicated “no contractual agreement” had not been found to extend its mission. In her response to the CRC, she explains having terminated the director’s duties due to “financial uncertainties and lack of transparency from management”.

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A contested reading of the accounts

Jean Varela, for his part, indicated to the CRC that “far from being in deficit», the Printemps des Comédiens association presented “positive accounts, with a surplus of 183,000 euros».

A reading of the accounts contested by the mayor and president of the Montpellier Metropolis, Michaël Delafosse. »I myself noted the extent of the deficit, which the Metropolis came to compensate. For administrators, it was always very complicated to have serious explanations“, Michaël Delafosse told AFP, specifying that he does not”“nothing is forbidden” on the legal level.

The name of Jean Varela’s successor, selected by a jury, will be announced on Wednesday, also indicated the mayor of Montpellier.