He was the winner of the 1954 Cannes tenor competition and sang at the Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie in Brussels in the 1955–56 season.
His vocal timbre and athletic physique led him to perform in many theatres in France and abroad, where roles included Samson, Radames, Lohengrin, Roméo, Faust, Don José, Werther, Julien in Louise, Mario in Tosca, the Duke of Mantua (in Rigoletto), Turiddu and Pinkerton.
At this time at the Opéra-Comique the frequent programming of Cavalleria Rusticana and Pagliacci allowed Botiaux to shine in this double-bill.
In the same period, he was also involved in the French-language revival of La fanciulla del West by Puccini, a work little represented in French-speaking countries at the time.
There he undertook the role of Canio in Pagliacci, and, outside his normal repertoire, Alfred in La Chauve-Souris by Johann Strauss.