Casablanca – French psychological thriller “Rose Royal” will make its Moroccan debut this September, bringing its one-woman stage adaptation to Rabat and Casablanca on September 23-24.
The Moroccan run begins on September 23 at Théâtre Bahnini in Rabat, followed by a show at Studio des Arts Vivants in Casablanca on September 24. Both performances start at 8:30 p.m.
The production comes to Morocco after making its mark on the French theater scene. It first premiered at the Festival Off d’Avignon, before continuing its run at Paris’ Studio des Champs-Élysées.
From page to stage
“Rose Royal” draws from the 2019 novel of the same name by French writer Nicolas Mathieu, who won the Prix Goncourt in 2018.
Anne Charrier and Gabor Rassov adapted the story for the stage, while Charrier plays Rose as the production’s sole performer, with the play directed by Romane Bohringer.
In that sense, Charrier does more than play Rose. Alone on stage, she carries the character’s world with her, moving between Rose’s conversations, memories, surroundings, and inner thoughts.
A love story with a darker turn
At the center of the story is Rose, a 50-year-old divorced mother of two. She has built a quiet routine around her work, her children, and the Royal, her neighborhood bar where she regularly spends her evenings.
Then she meets Luc. What begins as the possibility of a new relationship gradually changes shape.
Rose initially sees the relationship as a chance to experience love and perhaps start a new chapter in her life. But the story slowly introduces a darker tension as manipulation and control begin to creep into the relationship.
Rather than relying on constant twists, “Rose Royal” builds its suspense through the small details of an ordinary life. The humor and emotional warmth surrounding Rose make the shift in tone even more unsettling.
One woman, one stage
With only Charrier on stage, “Rose Royal” turns an intimate literary story into a tightly focused theatrical experience. The one-woman format places Rose’s voice and perspective at the center, while Bohringer’s direction gives the adaptation its restrained, increasingly tense atmosphere.
The result sits somewhere between theater, literary adaptation, and psychological thriller. It also gives Moroccan audiences a chance to see a French production that has already traveled from Avignon to Paris before arriving in Rabat and Casablanca.
For anyone drawn to stories that begin quietly before taking a darker turn, “Rose Royal” offers two September evenings to see how far an ordinary love story can really go.
