Théâtre Aimé Césaire

Théâtre Aimé Césaire is located in the ancient town hall in the center of Fort-de-France in a commercial district in the center of the capital, just steps from the enormous covered market and the Schoelcher library, the region of the French Caribbean and named for the late Martinican Aimé Césaire, a poet, playwright, and politician who was greatly admired in Martinique and across the world. Césaire is most known for his contributions to French writing from the perspective of the African people, including the one-book poetry Cahier d'un Retour au Pays Natal (1939) and the drama Un Tempête (1969).

This structure of the City Hall Fort de France was constructed over a period of 17 years, from 1884 to 1901, an elegant building in neoclassical style contains an Italian-style theater, and Théâtre Aimé Césaire is the classical style that sets it apart from the rest of the city that has been designated as a historical monument.

A theater with an 800-seat capacity was constructed for the main structure in 1912. This is where Aimé Césaire's office was housed during his 56-year tenure as mayor of the West Indian capital (from 1945 to 2001). He maintained it there even when a larger new Town Hall was erected nearby in 1970. In 2009, the building was renamed Théâtre Aimé Césaire, which hosts exhibitions and shows throughout the year.