[6] Following the country's independence from Belgium on June 30, 1960, it became the residence of the Republic's president, Joseph Kasa-Vubu, with his official quarters situated within the Palais de la Nation.

[6][7][8][9] Henceforth, the site was transformed into a presidential park (Parc Présidentiel), a project led by the Franco-Tunisian architect Olivier-Clément Cacoub.

[6][10] Cacoub was responsible for the initial project and designed the presidential park's gardens, which prominently featured imposing statues of Leopold II of Belgium astride his horse, as well as that of Henry Morton Stanley, alongside numerous other colonial effigies and monuments.

The Théâtre de la Verdure was subsequently constructed in 1970 within this presidential park based on the model of the amphitheaters of Ancient Rome and Greece and boasted a seating capacity of 3,500.

[6][5] In December 2011, the amphitheater was closed to the public to facilitate rehabilitation works in anticipation of the 14th edition of the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie summit, scheduled for Kinshasa in 2012.