This paper presents a close analysis of Bernard Picart’s 1727 frontispiece for Jean-Frederic Bernard’s Cérémonies et coutumes religieuses de tous les peuples du monde (1723-1737), employing the concept of theatricality to interpret its visual and communicative significance within the early eighteenth-century religious and cultural landscape. The frontispiece serves as a gateway to the subsequent volumes, shaping readers’ expectations and interpretations through its depiction of diverse religious references to Christianity, Islam, Judaism, ‘les peuples idolatres’, as well as various allusions to the religious controversies that marked the period, such as the Jansenist controversy. By engaging viewers into his design by relying on theatrical features, Picart prompts emotional responses and intellectual discourse, revealing insights into his artistic intentions and strategies as well as in the broader cultural and intellectual context. Further research into Picart’s theatrical techniques across the entire series promises to enhance our understanding of his visual rhetoric and its role in exploring religious pluralism and artistic expression in this seminal work.