Chantal Goya decorated in extremis by Rachida Dati

Chantal Goya’s enchanted road took a detour, Tuesday, through the salons of the Ministry of Culture. Rachida Dati elevated her to the rank of Commander in the Order of Arts and Letters. A few months ago, the singer learned of her nomination by an official letter signed Rima Abdul Malak. She expected it all the less since this form of honor had been limited, several decades ago, to a Knight’s degree received by post. “No one had offered to give me a single cross at the time.”she remembers. Never promoted to Officer, she subsequently moved straight to the next level.

An official delivery date had been considered at the beginning of this year, then cancelled due to a change of tenant on rue de Valois. On Friday, the minister’s office called her to propose an emergency ceremony, between the two rounds, in order to avoid any risk of a new postponement indefinitely. The singer immediately gave the green light before establishing, in a few hours, a list of guests, among whom were men and women who were not part of the regulars at the traditional ceremonies on rue de Valois. If Delphine Bürkli, mayor of 9^th arrondissement and a few other official figures did not want to miss this event, the audience was mainly composed of members of the candidate’s family and famous or anonymous friends, but particularly dear to her heart. Among them were, in particular, the dancers who have accompanied her on stage for years, even decades. Notified 48 hours earlier by a call or text message, they did not hesitate to respond.

During the traditional speech, Rachida Dati confided that she had discovered Marie Rose’s repertoire in her early years in Morocco, thanks to her mother who listened to them regularly. She spoke, in a few pages, about a journey that was not always a fairy tale, especially when the Indochina War forced Chantal to flee a family rice field where she was just beginning to grow up. She recalled her triumphs on stage but also a career as an actress that began when Jean-Luc Godard noticed her and made her screen debut in Male Female.

Unable to engage in this kind of writing exercise, Chantal responded with an improvisation during which she did not fail to mention Jean-Jacques Debout, to whom she owes everything, and, in particular, the librettos and songs that have never ceased to punctuate her life. She would never have imagined it when, at 18, she met him, during an evening where she was accompanying a friend. Some time later, after a second meeting, one evening by chance on the Champs-Élysées, they decided to never leave each other again.

She also recalled the memory of Barbara who, a long time ago, had whispered in her ear: “You’ll still be on stage at 80.” She has triumphantly passed this milestone and has no intention of retiring just yet. She has just completed a two-year tour, with a show called “On the Enchanted Road”. Encouraged by packed and enthusiastic audiences, she is now preparing the next one. Entitled “50 Years of Love”, it will allow her to celebrate “50 years of stage, magic, dreams and songs”The series of concerts planned throughout France will begin at the start of the school year and will pass through the Palais des Congrès in Paris on May 25. “The presence of four, even five generations of little and big children will be my greatest gift”she concluded.