A step in the gardens of Versailles, a glance at your smartphone, and suddenly you are transported to the heart of a 17th-century royal festival. This is the experience offered by Dansez Versailles, a project born out of a collaboration between the Palace of Versailles and Snap Inc. that uses augmented reality to bring to life the Baroque dances of the time of Louis XIV. The technology developed by Snap allows visitors to immerse themselves in an interactive historical journey designed to enhance the verimaterial heritage of court dance through mobile devices.
During the reign of the Sun King, dance was an essential means of expressing authority, discipline, and hierarchy. Louis XIV, a dancer himself, made it one of the pillars of court life, going so far as to found theRoyal Academy of Dance in 1661. Attending balls meant demonstrating one’s social status, mastery of the body and adherence to the rigid ceremonial of absolute power. The sovereign’s choreographic universe, enlivened by balls, masquerades, and theatrical performances, punctuated everyday life at Versailles and reinforced the symbolic language of the monarchy.
“By collaborating with Snap on an augmented reality project, the Palace of Versailles reaffirms its commitment to innovation to enhance and enrich the visitor experience,” says Christophe Leribault, President of the Palace, Museum and National Estate of Versailles. "With Dansez Versailles, visitors can now enjoy a unique immersive journey where Baroque dances come to life in their original setting. This technology serves as a powerful active transmission tool, helping to preserve and share a choreographic heritage that combines art, history and movement."
“We are delighted with this collaboration with the Palace of Versailles, which fully reveals the potential of augmented reality in historical reconstruction,” says Antoine Gilbert, Snap’s Paris AR Studio Manager. “These experiences offer a unique opportunity to admire the dances of the period, carefully restored to their original context. By integrating this choreographic content into the real environment, we bring to life an intangible heritage rarely accessible to the general public. Designed to be shared with families, these experiences fit naturally into the garden’s tour itinerary, inviting visitors to collectively and emotionally relive the splendor of the French royal court to the rhythm of music.”
Dansez Versailles aims to restore this universe through four experiences located at iconic spots in the gardens of the Palace. Using their smartphone’s dual camera, visitors see themselves projected in Baroque garb and involved in period choreography. The front camera applies virtual accessories such as hairstyles and hats; the rear camera transforms the entire figure into a dancer or dancers, set in a realistic context that faithfully replicates the codes of the time.
The first scenario, Bal du Roi, is set near the Fountain of Latona, one of the symbols of the park designed by André Le Nôtre. In this experience, the user plays a court dancer engaged in a solemn dance, reproduced in detail through the use of motion capture. The second lens, Bal en masque, is activated in the parterre of the Orangery and captures the elegant atmosphere of the masquerade festivities that punctuated the court calendar. The third, Ballet, takes place in the grove of the Théâtre d’eau and recalls the lightness of dances inspired by rural life, typical of the country divertissements so beloved in the late 17th century. Finally, Comédie-ballet, in the grove of the ballroom, takes the user into the hybrid world of theatrical performance, a genre that fused comedy, dance and music.
To enjoy the experience, visitors must download the official Château de Versailles app, available on digital stores. Once installed, simply select the path dedicated to dance on the main screen. Conceived by Clara Terreaux, the Palace’s heritage curator, the tour guides users through the gardens, where each stop allows users to activate one of four augmented reality experiences. Alternatively, the same experiences can also be accessed via Snapchat, thanks to the Dedicated Lenses carousel.
In addition to the technological element, the project stands out for its accuracy in historical reconstruction. The choreography was supervised by Pierre-François Dollé, a choreographer specializing in baroque dances, while the movements were performed by a professional dancer from the Royal Opera of Versailles. The entire repertoire was recorded using motion capture technology and then transposed into 3D animations to ensure a high level of fidelity to the gestures, postures and poise of the time.
The initiative is part of a reflection on the role of new technologies in the enjoyment of cultural heritage. Augmented reality, in this case, enriches the physical visit by offering an emotional interaction with elements that are often difficult to represent in the usual museum itineraries. Dance, in particular, as an ephemeral and performative art, benefits from tools that allow a dynamic restitution, close to contemporary sensibilities. With the introduction of these AR lenses, Versailles fits into a museum landscape increasingly oriented toward technological experimentation, confirming the growing interest in forms of communication that combine scientific precision and contemporary language. In an age when the line between real and virtual is increasingly blurred, initiatives such as this one offer an opportunity to reflect on how culture can be transmitted, reinterpreted and made accessible in new ways, without sacrificing the complexity of its content.
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| Versailles in augmented reality: Snap brings the dances of the Sun King back to life |
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