Cie Gare Centrale

What Cie Gare Centrale does

Cie Gare Centrale is a Belgian non-profit theatre company (association sans but lucratif, or asbl) founded in 1984 by Agnès Limbos, headquartered in Rebecq with administrative offices in Rhode-Saint-Genèse. The company specializes in object theatre, a performance discipline that uses everyday and found objects manipulated in full view of the audience as the primary expressive tools, blending visual and verbal storytelling with performance art elements at the intersection of puppetry and contemporary theatre. Limbos, who trained in physical theatre with Jacques Lecoq, is internationally recognized as a pioneer of the form.

The company's core product is touring object theatre productions developed over four decades, including twelve-plus shows such as Petit Pois (1987), Petites Fables (1998), Baby Macbeth (2017), and the in-development Face to Face (scheduled November 2026). Complementary offerings include three laboratory formats for artistic students and professional artists, the Sans crier Gare exhibition documenting the company's history, and a published book on object theatre methodology with English translation in progress. Productions tour through direct engagement with international festivals and partner venues across 36+ countries via the Central Stations network.

The business model operates on a project-by-project basis combining performance fees, workshop tuition, exhibition hosting revenue, and book sales with public subsidies from Belgian governmental bodies (Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles, Wallonia-Brussels International) and international cultural foundations (notably Kulturstiftung des Bundes). Distribution is managed internally by a small administrative team led by Sylviane Evrard, with collaboration across a network of strategic venue partners including Théâtre de la Poudrière (Switzerland), Westflügel Leipzig (Germany), Vélo Théâtre (France), and Theater Mummpitz (Germany). The organization has 1-10 employees and is privately held with no external investment.

Name

Cie Gare Centrale

Legal name

Compagnie Gare Centrale

Website

https://garecentrale.be

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Cie Gare Centrale is a Belgian non-profit theatre company founded in 1984 by Agnès Limbos that creates touring object theatre productions and offers laboratory workshops for young audiences, professional artists, and educational institutions across 36+ countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Rebecq

HQ country

Belgium

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Theatre Productions and Tickets: Revenue from touring theatre productions at venues and festivals internationally, with ticket sales for performances.
2. Workshops and Laboratories: Fees for laboratory programs delivered to educational institutions and professional artists, ranging from 2 days to several weeks, with customizable duration and location.
3. Exhibition Revenue: Revenue from the 'Sans crier Gare' exhibition tracing the company's productions since 1984 through objects, scenographies, and installations.
4. Book Sales and Publications: Sales of the book 'Tu l'as trouvé où, ce spectacle?' published by Editions de l'Œil, Paris (2019), 271pp. ISBN: 9782351372777. English translation is being sought.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Cie Gare Centrale is a Belgian non-profit theatre company that creates, produces, and tours object theatre performances using everyday objects as expressive tools and characters. The company also delivers laboratory workshops for artistic students and professional artists, hosts the touring 'Sans crier Gare' exhibition, and publishes books documenting object theatre methodology.

Product overview

Cie Gare Centrale is a Belgian non-profit theatre company (asbl) founded in 1984 by Agnès Limbos, specializing in object theatre. The company's core offering consists of touring theatrical performances and productions that transform ordinary and unusual objects into characters, landscapes, and metaphors. The product portfolio includes: (1) the main show series featuring object theatre productions like Face to Face, Petit Pois, and Baby Macbeth; (2) Laboratories offering professional workshops in object theatre techniques; (3) the Sans crier Gare exhibition showcasing the company's 40-year history; (4) published works including the book 'Where did you get that show?'; and (5) Espace Pro providing professional resources. The company also operates Limb-off, covering Agnès Limbos's directing collaborations outside the company. Productions are developed with artistic collaborators and tour internationally to theatres and festivals.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Touring Performances and Shows (Spectacles) Object theatre productions touring internationally to theatres and festivals, using manipulated objects as characters, landscapes, or metaphors to tell stories. Targeted at general public aged 12 and up, with productions such as Petit Pois (581+ performances) and Baby Macbeth (176 performances).
• Face to Face (Face à Face) An object and figurine theatre creation centered around a long oval table, exploring themes of power, intimacy, and narrative through manipulated objects and found materials. Premiering November 2026 with three distinct versions, targeted at general audiences aged 12+.
• Laboratories (Labos) Professional development workshops in object theatre led by Agnès Limbos and collaborators, including 'L'acteur face à l'objet', 'Le corps face à l'objet' (with Nicole Mossoux), and 'Le théâtre d'objet fait son cinéma' (with Guillaume Istace). Customizable duration and location, targeting artistic students and professional artists.
• The Real Fake Object Theater Conference (La vraie fausse conférence sur le théâtre d'objet) A collaborative object theater conference/show featuring eight actors, exploring theatrical conventions and object manipulation. Targeted at general public aged 12 and up, with duration of 1 hour.
• Sans crier Gare Exhibition Touring exhibition showcasing the company's theatrical history since 1984 through objects, scenographies, installations, posters, photographs, and drawings from collaborators including Daniel Daniel, Alice Piemme, and Mélanie Rutten. Made available to partner theatres and cultural venues.
• Book: 'Tu l'as trouvé où, ce spectacle?' / 'Where did you get that show?' A Guide to Theatrical Gleaning by Agnès Limbos and Veronika Mabardi, published by Editions de l'Œil, Paris. Explores the process of creating object theatre performances and the history of the art form. English translation by Eleanor Margolies in progress.
• Limb-off (Directing Services) Agnès Limbos's directing collaborations outside the company, including work with Theater Mummpitz Nuremberg (Memories/Erinnerungen project), various theatre companies, and artistic accompaniment for emerging artists.

Quantifiable outcome

• 581+ performances globally for Petit Pois since 1987
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Theater Mummpitz (Nuremberg, Germany)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2022Two-year collaboration 'Memories/Erinnerungen' financed by Kulturstiftung des Bundes (German Federal Cultural Foundation). Project investigating objects as means of communication and materialized memory in theatre for young audiences. Theatrical production created in summer/autumn 2023 directed by Agnès Limbos.
• Akademie für Darstellende Kunst Bayern (Academy for Performing Arts, Ratisbon, Germany)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2022Partner in 'Memories/Erinnerungen' two-year project with Theater Mummpitz and Cie Gare Centrale. Drama students participate in four meetings over two years to see shows, discuss object theatre, and attend workshops led by Agnès Limbos.
• Festival Mondial des Théâtres de Marionnettes (Charleville-Mézières, France)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2017Annual world puppet theatre festival. Hosted Agnès Limbos as special celebrated artist in 2017, presented 'The Real Fake Object Theater Conference', and provided carte blanche for 'Sans crier Gare' exhibition.
• Théâtre de la Poudrière (Neuchâtel, Switzerland)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSupport venue for the Face to Face creation, providing artistic and production support for the new multi-version production premiering November 2026.
• Westflügel Leipzig (Germany)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSupport venue for the Face to Face creation, collaborating on this object and figurine theatre production.
• Vélo Théâtre (Apt, France)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerConventioned stage for object theatre and intersection of arts and sciences. Support venue for Face to Face and delegated production of 'The Real Fake Object Theater Conference' revival.
• SABAMminorOthersBelgian collective rights management society for authors, composers, and publishers, providing licensing services and supporting culture through awards.
• Central Stations NetworkminorOthersArtistic friendship network connecting 36+ central stations worldwide including Brussels, Antwerp, Verviers, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Cologne, Milan, Tokyo, Cotonou, Rossio, Prague, Pisa, Beijing, New York, Nuremberg, Novosibirsk, Montreal, Melbourne, Maputo, Krasnoyarsk, Helsinki, Detroit, Copenhagen, and Brno.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Royal de Luxe: French street theatre company famous for giant marionette spectacles performed across cities worldwide. Comparable as a French-rooted puppet/object theatre organization with global touring scale, but operates at a much larger budget and production scale than Cie Gare Centrale.

Direct peers

• Mummenschanz: Swiss mime and mask theatre troupe with a multi-decade international touring history. Comparable as a European mime/object-based theatre company that transforms everyday objects and forms into expressive performance — a closely related aesthetic to Cie Gare Centrale's object theatre.
• Compagnie Philippe Genty: French puppet and object theatre company led by Philippe Genty, a pioneer in the field. Closely comparable as a French-language object theatre company with multi-decade touring history and similar intimate-theatre aesthetic using manipulated objects and figures.
• Little Angel Theatre: London-based puppet theatre with a long-running programme of productions for children and family audiences plus educational work. Comparable as a mid-size puppet/object theatre combining touring shows with workshop and training activity aimed at younger audiences, like Cie Gare Centrale's young-audience focus.
• Spare Parts Puppet Theatre: Australian puppet theatre company with both touring productions and educational programming. Comparable as a small-to-mid-size puppet/object theatre company combining performances with workshops and pedagogical offerings — and is named as a partner/collaborator of Cie Gare Centrale in the data.
• Handspring Puppet Company: South African puppet company internationally renowned for large-scale object/puppet work, most famously the puppets for War Horse. Directly comparable as an object/puppet theatre company with an international touring model and a comparable art-form specialization.
• Duda Paiva Company: Brazilian-born, Netherlands-based puppet and object theatre artist touring internationally across Europe and Latin America. Comparable as a small, internationally touring object/puppet theatre company with a similar solo-artist-led creative model and festival-circuit distribution.
• Faulty Optic: British object theatre company producing devised work for adult and family audiences with a distinctive object-manipulation aesthetic. Comparable as a small European object theatre company with similar niche art-form specialization, intimate performance style, and festival-circuit touring profile.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Compagnie-Gare-Centrale-1083207021808692/?fref=ts
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/compagnie-gare-centrale

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Cie Gare Centrale