Radhouane El Meddeb

Trained at the Higher Institute of Dramatic Art of Tunis, he is recognized as “The young
hopeful of the Tunisian theatre” in 1996 by the Tunisian Section of the International Theatre
Institute. He is, then, recruited as an actor within the training and research workshop of the
National Theatre of Toulouse under the direction of Jacques Rosner. In Tunisia, he works with
Fadhel Jaibi, Taoufik Jebali and Mohamed Driss, highly influential artists in the Arab world. In
France, he works with the directors Jacques Rosner, Lotfi Achour and Catherine Boskowitz,
and he collaborates artistically with contemporary authors such as Natacha de Pontcharra,
Adel Hakim and Camille de Toledo. As a movie actor, he appeared in two films by Férid
Boughdir, Un Eté à la Goulette / A Summer at La Goulette and Halfaouine, l’Enfant des
Terrasses / Halfaouine, The child of Terrace Roofs.
Throughout those years devoted to the theatre, he worked in the same time with Tunisian
choreographers, as an interpreter and an artistic collaborator. Being quite fond of dancing, he
is equally nurtured by classes directed by Lisa Nelson and Jean Laurent Sasportès in Europe.
Because he felt the need for an artistic experience other than the theatre, he signed for his
first creation in 2005, a solo dance entitled Pour en finir avec MOI / To finish with MY SELF, as
an intimate introspection and a vital experience. A real revelation that will make him go into
dancing and become a choreographer-interpreter. Once performed at the Rencontres
Chorégraphiques de Carthage / The Choreography festival of Carthage, this show has
identified by professionals, a turning point in his career. Then, he signed several creations in
France, beginning in the following year, with his solo dance Huwa, ce lui / Huwa, that one for
Montpellier Danse 2006.
In 2007, he joined the casting of 1000 Départs de Muscles / 1000 Starting Muscles, a creation
of Héla Fattoumi and Eric Lamoureux.
In 2008, he presented his creation Quelqu’un va danser... / Someone’s going to dance... at
the International Choreography Festival of Seine-Saint-Denis. In the same year, he created Je
danse et je vous en donne à bouffer / I dance and give you food at the Centre National de la
Danse in Pantin (CND / The National Dance Center).
In 2008 and 2009, Radhouane El Meddeb participated to Corps produit, corps productif /
Produced body, producing body, held by the International Choreography Festival of SeineSaint-Denis
and to Mon corps, mon lieu / My body, my place, supported by the Fondation
Culture et Diversité. These workshops attempt to raise awareness of contemporary dancing
and to transmit choreographic composition to a large audience, bringing together young people coming from Zones d’ Education Prioritaire (Areas of Priority Education), women
members of neighborhood associations and also elderly people.
In 2010, he created his first group show, at the CND, Ce que nous sommes / What we are,
with five dancers, which has been on tour in France for two years. In December 2010, he
collaborated with Stéphane Gombert in Chant d’amour / Love Song, a creation about a novel
and a film by Jean Genet, which they performed at the Collectif 12, Mantes la Jolie. The
creation process begun as early as 2009, at the Babel Theatre in Beirut, with the support of
the French Cultural Center.
Starting from January 2011, Radhouane El Meddeb became an associate artist at the
CENTQUATRE-PARIS. A l’Etroit / In a narrow situation is created there in March 2011, a
creation initiated by the festival concordan(s)e and in collaboration with Philip Adam.
In the same year, he directed the performance Tunis, January 14 2001 at the Beirut Art
Center in Lebanon on the occasion of the Meeting Point 6.
In July 2012, at the Montpellier Danse Festival, he created and danced the solo dance Sous
leurs pieds, le paradis / Under their feets, the heaven, whose choreographic composition is
shared with Thomas Lebrun. In 2012, he is invited by Matias Pilet and Alexandre Fournier to
choreograph the nouveau cirque duo Nos limites / Our limits, created in 2013 at the
CENTQUATRE-PARIS. In parallel with his creations, Radhouane El Meddeb is designated as a
reporter for scenography, direction and choreography for the jury in charge of the selection
of pensioners of the French Academy in Rome for the years 2012 and 2013.
In 2014, he created a new group show Au temps où les Arabes dansaient... / In the days when
the Arabs were dancing... a performance for 4 dancers, within the International Festival CDC
Toulouse and région Midi-Pyrénées and at the CENTQUATRE- PARIS.
In 2015, with the support of the National Monuments Centre and in the frame of the first
edition of the event Monuments en Mouvements / Monuments in Movements, Radhouane El
Meddeb presented the premiere of Heroes, prelude, performance for 10 urban dancers, at
Pantheon in Paris, which hosted contemporary dance for the first time. In June 2015, he’s
invited by the College of Dance Biennale in Venice, he choreographed Nous sommes tous
étrangers / We are all Foreigners at Campo San Trovaso, with Italian interpreters.
In 2016, Radhouane El Meddeb continues the work with interpreters of Heroes prelude. The
premiere of this new creation called Heroes is presented at the Festival of Marseille - Dance
and Arts Multiples 2016. He also creates the solo A mon père, une dernière danse et un
premier baiser / To my father, one last dance and a first kiss that is presented at Montpellier
Danse 2016.