Playing Santa is a “very special role – you can’t just give it to anyone″.Credit: AP
“It’s hard to find replacements, even though it pays well,” Bartoll said, despite some of her Father Christmases earning several thousand euros a week. “But you have to find them. It’s a very special role. You can’t give it to just anyone.
“It takes a lot of energy and patience to stay cheerful all day long.”
Frederick Manzorro, a professional Father Christmas for the past six years in the Lyon area, said he was doing a roaring trade and had to turn down 30 requests this winter. But he said it wasn’t for the faint-hearted.
“It’s a thankless job, after all: it’s hot and itchy in the suit, and you really have to get into a role,” he said. “You can’t settle for the bare minimum – you need a voice, specific body language, and you have to pay attention to what you say.”
Galeries Lafayette shopping mall in Paris. The city goes all out for Christmas, but there’s a Santa shortage. Credit: Adobe Stock
The Hors Medias agency, based in Alsace, said it had been forced to launch an appeal on social networks.
“We’re using every possible communication channel. We started looking as early as October, but it’s no use – there’s no interest any more,” one unnamed manager was cited as saying.
“It’s complicated because we’re looking for fairly specific profiles, people who like human contact, are serious and have a clean criminal record. And these are one-off contracts.”
One Father Christmas in the Loire Valley recently threw in the towel mid-contract because he was tired of being insulted or threatened by parents.
He said he was also tired of being shouted at in the streets with taunts such as “go back to the North Pole”, regional daily La Nouvelle Republique reported.
The Telegraph, London
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