Why you shouldn’t miss this!
Why you shouldn’t miss this!
“Shame must change sides.” With these words, and her courageous decision to make her trial public, Gisèle Pelicot ignited an international reckoning in the fight to end violence against women. What began as the Mazan rape case, in a small town in southern France, revealed how ordinary men across ages and social backgrounds could commit an unthinkable crime, the repeated assault of an unconscious woman. This urgent evening of readings revisits examinations, pleas, and commentaries from the trial. Created by Servane Dècle and Milo Rau in collaboration with Pelicot’s lawyers, the court, psychological experts, legal commentators, witnesses, and feminist organizations, it confronts not only one case, but the global system of patriarchy itself.
Performed at Judson Memorial Church.
Date + Time
Date + Time
About
About
NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE
STREAMING
While tickets have sold out, this production will be streamed on HowlRound
All allocated seats have now been distributed. A rush line will open one hour before the performance, and any available seats will be released at that time.
Gallery
Gallery
© Christophe Raynaud de Lage, Festival d’Avignon
© Christophe Raynaud de Lage, Festival d’Avignon
© Christophe Raynaud de Lage, Festival d’Avignon
Creative Credits
Creative Credits
Research and dramaturgy Servane Dècle
Research and direction Milo Rau
Project dramaturgy Nastasia Griese
Executive production: Frank Hentschker
Casting direction: Nicole Ansari-Cox
The Pelicot Trial, a production by Vienna Festival (Wiener Festwochen), co-produced by the Festival d’Avignon, is presented by The Martin E. Segal Theatre Center, CUNY, NYU Skirball, and Judson Memorial Church. Supported by the Consulate General of Switzerland in New York
Special thanks to Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyers, Mr. Camus and Mr. Babonneau, the journalists Adèle Bossard (Ici Vaucluse), Jean-Philippe Deniau (Radio France), Britta Sandberg (Der Spiegel), Valérie Manteau, Marion Dubreuil, Lenaïg Bredoux (Mediapart), Le Monde, La Déferlante, 604.cafe, Tal Madesta, Charles Rojzman, Helene Devynck, psychiatric expert Laurent Layet, prosecutor Jean-François Mayet, lawyer Kabore, Caroline Darian, JC Lattes, feminists Justine Le Noac’h and Nellie (NousToustes 84), Jackie Wang, Neige Sinno, Lisa Giffon, la Ciivise, Morgan N. Lucas, Lola Lafon, Nicolas Hénin, Manon Garcia, Mathilde Levesque, Geoffroy de Lagasnerie, researchers Solenne Jouanneau, Aïcha Limbada, Guillaume Carnino, Baptiste Morizot, Camille Bègue, and Centre Norbert Elias (CNRS- Aix-Marseille Université – Avignon Université) : Dorothée Dussy, Lucille Florenza, Stéphanie Fonvielle, Riwanon Gouez, Mélanie Gourarier, Fatma Hamdoun, Laurence Hérault, Corentin Legras, Céline Lesourd, Perrine Lachenal, Michèle Salord-Lopez, Irène Seriau, Raphaël Perrin.
The artists
The artists
Milo Rau
Milo Rau, a Swiss theater and film director, journalist, essayist, and lecturer, founded the theater and film production company International Institute of Political Murder (IIPM) which he has been running ever since. His productions, campaigns and films have been invited to some of the biggest national and international festivals. The Belgian newspaper La Libre Belgique recently named him “one of Europe’s most sought-after directors” with the German weekly Der Freitag describing him “as the most controversial theatre director of his generation.”
Servane Dècle
Servane Dècle is is a French dramaturge, writer, actress, and performer who uses a multi-disciplinary approach to tackle urgent contemporary issues. She worked as a civil engineer and has been collaborating for several years with theatre artists Milo Rau, Simon Roth, and Clara Hédouin, among others. She also performs her own plays.
The Vienna Festival
The Vienna Festival (Wiener Festwochen) is a major annual art and culture festival running for five weeks in May/June, known for bridging tradition with contemporary art, presenting international theatre, music, opera, and performance, and often tackling socio-political issues through events like the 2024’s “Free Republic of Vienna,” a radical reimagining of the festival’s structure with citizen participation. It aims to connect Austria to the world through art, showcasing both Viennese creativity and global artistic dialogue, building on Vienna’s historical role as a modernist hub
Support
Support
NYU Skirball’s programs are made possible in part with support from the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature; and the Howard Gilman Foundation; Dance Reflections by Van Cleef & Arpels; Culture Ireland; The Shubert Foundation; Collins Building Services; General Delegation of the Government of Flanders to the USA; Goethe Institut New York with support from the Foreign Office of the Federal Republic of Germany; Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation; Fan Fox & Leslie R. Samuels Foundation; New England Foundation for the Arts; Harkness Foundation for Dance; and Marta Heflin Foundation; as well as our valued donors through memberships, commissioning, and Allies for Arts Access Fund support.
