À l'ombre du réverbère: Redwane Rajel recounts his metamorphosis at Théâtre Paris-Villette

From November 18 to 23, 2025, À l'ombre du réverbère at the Théâtre Paris-Villette retraces Redwane Rajel's journey from prison to the stage, in an intimate, embodied theatrical narrative.

Without seeking the spectacular, À l'ombre du réverbère gives voice to an extraordinary journey: that of Redwane Rajel, former boxer, former prisoner, turned actor. Presented from November 18 to 23, 2025 at the Théâtre Paris-Villette, this one-man show tells the story of a troubled existence, made up of ruptures, struggles and a possible rebirth thanks to the theater.

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It was in prison that Redwane Rajel discovered the stage, during a workshop led by Olivier Py. This experience radically transformed his career. Accompanied by directors such as Joël Pommerat and Enzo Verdet, he reinvented himself as an actor. In À l'ombre du réverbère, he tells this story himself, drawing on his childhood memories, his military period, his boxing career, his incarceration in solitary confinement, then his return to the world through art.

Enzo Verdet's sober, precise staging refocuses the show on the naked word, without ever lapsing into pathos or sensationalism. It shows a man in all his complexity, confronted by his mistakes but striving towards a possible elsewhere. This approach allows the full humanity of the story to emerge, in a balance between confession and theater.

This show is aimed at audiences interested in committed autobiographical forms, and at those interested in the place of art in journeys of personal transformation. Lovers of strong, aptly embodied narratives will find it a singular experience. On the other hand, spectators looking for constructed fiction or spectacular scenography may be thrown off balance by the purity of the proposal.

With À l'ombre du réverbère, Redwane Rajelturns theater into a space for self-appropriation and transmission. He tells the story not of an end, but of a journey.

This article is based on publicly available information and is not based on direct experience of the show.