A play based on the trial of the men who drugged and raped Gisèle Pelicot will come to London for one night only this November – and promises to feature a star-studded cast. The four-hour production of The Pelicot Trial: Tribute to Gisèle Pelicot has been performed around the world, including in New York City and Avignon, the city in France where the trial took place. This autumn, it is coming to London County Hall, the home of Agatha Christie’s Witness for the Prosecution.
It was jaw-dropping, harrowing, really emotional,” said Nadia Fall, artistic director and co-chief executive of the Young Vic, which is putting on the performance. The full cast will be announced before tickets go on sale in the coming weeks. Fall added: “The ensemble rehearses together just once.
That allows you to call up the best of people who are available for a short commitment. I really can’t wait to announce the company. It is, I think, 27 actors all in all.” The play was created by Milo Rau and Servane Dècle.
The Swiss director and playwright Rau is known for adapting court cases for the stage, including the Moscow trial of the Russian punks Pussy Riot and the trial of the Romanian despot Nicolae Ceaușescu. Pelicot became internationally recognised after she waived her right to anonymity to ensure a public trial of her ex-husband, Dominique Pelicot, who, for almost a decade from 2011, drugged her unconscious and invited dozens of men from an internet forum to rape her. Her husband was sentenced to 20 years in prison in December 2024 and guilty verdicts were returned for all 51 accused men.
She wanted the story to be public, saying “shame must change sides”. We let them come in and out if they want, but very few do. Even Gisèle Pelicot herself came to watch in New York.
She said, ‘The actress was doing better than I did on trial.’” Journalists covering the trial gave Rau and Dècle thousands of pages of their notebooks, and the play is based on what was said in court. And we have toured it in at least 15 different countries, in different languages, some I barely understand myself, and the audience still understands the play. Sadly it is a universal experience.
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