It is a hard-hitting creation, a courageous creation, because it is not easy to approach subjects as painful and chilling as violence against women, femicides in particular. Hakim Djaziri, the author and director of the play, collected the heartbreaking testimony of Hager Sehili, Alham’s older sister, found dead in the bathtub of her apartment in Strasbourg, on April 17, 2010, after being tortured and then strangled by her husband.
She had tried, in vain, to file a complaint the day before for the violence and death threats she was enduring. After a prologue evoking Alham’s youth, illuminated by her close relationship with her sister, then her happiness at the beginning of a union based on an apparently shared love, the show forces us to look in the face her gradual descent into hell. At the same time, the mechanisms of a domination are finely analyzed, which soon establishes the chronicle of a death foretold.
The second part of the show tells the story of Hager’s tireless fight for 11 years to bring justice to her sister and advance the cause of victims of domestic violence. She was the first to obtain a conviction from the state for “dysfunction” and “gross negligence.”
The show is remarkably well served by the actors, first and foremost Séphora Haymann, Hakim Djaziri and Lisa Hours. The relevance of the scenography promotes the deployment of emotion. And the staging choices emphasize the overcoming of a singular story and the emotion it arouses, in favor of awareness and collective reflection on a social scourge of worrying magnitude. Because, yes, despite undeniable progress, there is still much to be done in this area. Breaking the silence, including on theater stages, is a step in the right direction.
At La Factory-Théâtre de l’Oulle, 19 place Crillon, at 10:30 p.m., from June 29 to July 21 (break on Tuesdays).
Prices: €22/€15 (reduced and off-card) – Reservations on 06 87 02 69 41 or on www.theatredeloulle.com
Angela Luccioni
