Nour

A poetic celebration of the Arabic language

  • Show
  • Poetry
  • Music

With the Institut du monde arabe

France / Created for the Festival d'Avignon 2025

The Institut du monde arabe (Paris) invites you to a night during which musicians, actors, poets, dancers, and artists celebrate the extraordinary richness of this edition’s guest language. 

Cour du lycée Saint-Joseph © Christophe Raynaud de Lage

Presentation

A night to celebrate the guest language of this 79th edition in all its forms and expressions! From pre-Islamic poetry to raï, from original maqams to rap, and from Sufi music to Arab-Andalusian melodies, audiences will witness the richness of a language as poetic as it is scholarly, as visual as it is musical, with a history that embraces both the overlooked modernity of sixth-century texts and thoughts and the popular songs of yesterday and today. Structured around foundational themes such as love, spirituality, nature, and resistance, this night invites the public to a series of concerts, performances, readings, and screenings. The courtyard of the Lycée Saint-Joseph will become the setting for a celebration where everyone has the chance to experience the beauty of the Arabic language for one magical evening. 

يدعوكم معهد العالم العربي إلى ليلة يحتفل خلالها، موسيقيون، وممثلون، وشعراء، وراقصون، وفنانون، بثراء اللغة العربية الاستثنائي. 

Distribution

With Rima Abdul-Malak, Nawel Ben Kraïem, Walid Ben Selim, Rodolphe Burger, Abo Gabi, Naïssam Jalal, Emel Mathlouthi, Tania Saleh (distribution en cours)

Artistic and musical director
Julien Colardelle (Souffle Collectif)
Director
Radhouane El Meddeb
Poetry consultants
Rima Abdul-Malak, Farouk Mardam-Bey

Production

Coproduction Institut du monde arabe with the support of Arabic Language Centre (ALC), Festival d’Avignon 

Practical infos

And…

L’Heure du conte

À la rencontre des sources orientales de La Fontaine: les Fables de Kalila et Dimna
  • L’Heure du conte
with Institut du monde arabe

La Voix des femmes

Une célébration des 50 ans de la disparition d’Oum Kalthoum, l’Astre d’Orient
  • Concert
Oum Kalthoum

L’Heure du conte

Les autres nuits : les contes méconnus des Mille et Une Nuits
  • L’Heure du conte
with Institut du monde arabe