A high-profile documentary play derived from the courtroom testimonies of the Gisèle Pelicot rape trial is coming to London County Hall for a single performance this November, featuring an ensemble cast of 27 to 30 actors and public figures.
The acclaimed four-hour production, titled The Pelicot Trial: Tribute to Gisèle Pelicot, will make its UK premiere on November 30 as part of the Young Vic Theatre’s final shows of its 2026/2027 season. Created by Swiss director and playwright Milo Rau alongside Servane Dècle, the documentary theatre piece compiles accounts from the legal proceedings, police files, social commentary, and psychiatric evaluations of the 51 men who faced prosecution.
London County Hall Hosts the One-Night UK Premiere
The upcoming staging takes place at London County Hall, the home of Agatha Christie’s Witness for the Prosecution. Originally blocked from staging at the Belgrade International Theatre Festival last year according to reporting from The Stage, the production has previously toured internationally, including stops in New York City and Avignon, the French city where the trial occurred.
Nadia Fall, artistic director and co-chief executive of the Young Vic, recalled encountering the foreign-language staging. I saw it in French originally – all four hours of it. It was jaw-dropping, harrowing, really emotional,
Fall said, adding, It was the act of witnessing that really got me: it is long-form and testimonial in form.
Courtroom Evidence Transformed Into Documentary Theatre
The production relies entirely on source documentation supplied by reporters who covered the proceedings. Journalists handed Rau and Dècle thousands of pages of their personal notebooks, allowing the creators to build a script grounded strictly in what was said in court rather than traditional theatrical sets and costumes.
“It isn’t scenes and costumes in a set like a traditional piece of theatre. It is the facts. It just floors you.”
Nadia Fall, artistic director and co-chief executive of the Young Vic
The underlying case gained international attention after Gisèle Pelicot waived her right to anonymity. Her ex-husband, Dominique Pelicot, was sentenced in December 2024 to 20 years in prison after drugging her unconscious for nearly a decade and inviting dozens of men from an internet forum to rape her. Fifty-one men in total faced prosecution, resulting in guilty verdicts for all accused individuals following a three-and-a-half-month trial in Avignon.
A Star-Studded Ensemble Rehearsing Just Once
Organizers are assembling a large company of recognizable actors and public figures for the London event. While sources vary slightly on the exact headcount—citing 27 actors in one account and 30 performers across the wider ensemble—Fall explained that the restricted single-night format allows the theatre to secure top-tier talent for a brief schedule.
“Because it’s one night only, what we are able to do is ring our best actors, people you will know ‘off the telly’ as well,”
Nadia Fall, artistic director and co-chief executive of the Young Vic
Fall added that the ensemble rehearses together just once, which allows the production to call up the best people who are available for a short commitment.
Co-creator Milo Rau emphasized the broader political intent behind the international tour. We do it one time only in each city,
Rau noted, describing the production as more of a political act really, than a play.
Dècle noted that audiences consistently remain for the entire four-hour runtime, adding that Gisèle Pelicot herself attended a performance in New York and remarked that the actress performed better than she had during the actual legal proceedings.
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