Viennese festival weeks: captivating staging of the Pelicot process

Viennese festival weeks: captivating staging of the Pelicot process

In the Catholic parish church of St. Elisabeth in Vienna, an extraordinary play was listed under the direction of Milo Rau, which addressed the court trial against the convicted sex offender Dominique Pelicot. The staging, which took place on June 19, 2025, was divided into three acts and 48 fragments and lasted over six hours. According to Kleine Zeitung Lasen actors and comments on the court hearings, while a canvas in great recording showed.

Dominique Pelicot had stunned his wife Gisèle for years and had them raped them by numerous men. This frightening case first came to light in 2020 when Pelicot tried to film women in a supermarket. During a search, 20,000 rape videos were found that had documented Pelicot and at least 70 accomplice. A judgment against him was made in December 2024, where he was sentenced to a prison sentence of 20 years, while the penalties vary for the accumulated accomplice between 3 and 15 years, reports ZDF today .

The public process and its effects

The courage of Gisèle Pelicot to make the case public brought the process of global attention. She devoted her fight against sexual violence to all the unknown victims. She herself reported about 200 attacks that she had suffered. The court proceedings ended with a clear judgment, and the possibility of preventive detention after the prison sentence for Pelicot remains. The penalties for the other defendants are not yet final because the ex-husband's lawyer examines an appointment.

The staging in Vienna, which took place in a minimalist setting with only two tables and a speaker, differed significantly from the atmosphere of a conventional court. The weakly reinforced echo of the church gave the performance a sacred character and should draw the audience into the oppressive topic. With sections that were read out in the first person, the piece received an urgent and personal touch.

art as an expression and examination of sexual violence

The connection between sexuality and art is delicate, as the discussion about the topic of the topic of sexual violence shows. Historically, artists such as Artemisia Genttileschi, who addressed sexual violence in their work, had enormous challenges. Her most famous work, "Judith and Holofernes", could be seen as an example of overcoming isolation and processing of victims of sexual violence. Similarly, modern artists like Tracey Emin reflect personal experiences with sexualized violence and shame in their work, the Ärzteblatt .

The debate about the presentation of sexual violence in art remains up to date and offers a space for reflection, both for the artists and for society. The example of Gisèle Pelicot and the growing public perception of the topic illustrate that art not only serves as a medium of processing, but also as a platform for making it visible.

The abbreviated version of the play will have its French premiere at the Festival in Avignon on July 18 and promises to continue to illuminate the shocking and at the same time significant aspects of the process.