The Théâtre Jean-Deschamps began as an act of civic improvisation.

In 1908, with little more than a month's notice, Carcassonne cleared a patch of ground once occupied by the medieval cloister of the Basilica of Saints Nazarius and Celsus, built a makeshift stage and installed benches for 500. The first performance was a Comédie-Française tragedy, played under the stars against the backdrop of the ramparts.

The cloister itself had a complicated history. Partially demolished during Simon de Montfort's siege of 1209 to reinforce the fortifications, it was finally finished off by the Revolution. The site lay as vines and an orchard until the open-air theatre movement swept France.

Today, the venue holds around 3,000 and anchors the annual Festival de Carcassonne each July. VoiceMap's tours of the Cité trace the layers beneath the stage, connecting the basilica, the siege and the medieval walls that frame every summer performance.