URBAN SAFAR Rabat
Urban Safar Rabat is far more than a theatre performance—it is an immersive journey into the beating heart of the city and the lives of its people. Over the course of three unforgettable hours, the boundaries between theatre and reality, audience and performer, strangers and neighbours gradually dissolve.
Created using the internationally acclaimed adoption methodology developed by the Dutch theatre company Female Economy and its artistic director, Adelheid Roosen, the project begins long before the audience arrives. For two weeks, performers and local residents share each other’s everyday lives, day and night. Out of these intimate encounters emerges a performance that is not simply staged, but truly lived.
On a surprising journey through the streets of the Kasbah of the Oudayas and the Medina of Rabat, you step into a world that usually remains hidden. Behind doors, in squares, and along narrow alleyways, personal stories, dreams, and memories unfold, revealing new perspectives on the city and its people.
Urban Safar Rabat is a celebration of hospitality, curiosity and human connection —an opportunity to discover the city as you have never experienced it before. Urban Safar Rabat is a co-production by Female Economy, Jouk Attamtil Al Bidaoui (Kabareh Cheikhats), and Fondation HIBA.
The performance runs from 26 November to 5 December 2026. Stay up to date with the latest news and behind-the-scenes updates by following the dedicated Instagram page
URBAN SAFAR Rabat
Location:
Rabat, Morocco
Adress:
Start location:
Place des Oudayas devant le Dépôt Moulay Yazid
Runs from:
26 Nov. to Dec. 5, 2026
Time:
19:30 – 22:30
“Urban Safar Tanja: A journey to the heart of Tangier.” | 2M
“The richness of the stories brought to life in this performance emerges from themes explored with courage, honesty, and, above all, deep sensitivity.” | Fadwa Misk, Le Matin
“Look better, look differently, connecting – That’s what the [Neighbourhood Performance] aims for and manages to do.” | NRC Handelsblad
“What a miracle this [concept] is: a warm bath of tenderness.” | De Volkskrant ★★★★★
“A very strong concept that will open eyes and create solidarity in many cities” | Cutting Edge
Urban Safar Tanja
After the success of Urban Safar Tanja, the theatre company Female Economy returns to Morocco this summer! The new theatre production Urban Safar Rabat follows a long line of sold-out community-based performances, from three different neighbourhoods in Amsterdam and the asylum seekers’ centre in Utrecht, to Paramaribo, Mexico City, Ciudad Juárez, and Tangier. This time, the historic Medina and the Kasbah of the Oudayas in Rabat become the stage. For more than a decade, these groundbreaking productions have captivated audiences around the world. Renowned for their unique blend of theatre, social engagement, and authentic human encounters, they have received multiple prestigious international awards and recognitions. With Urban Safar Rabat, the city itself becomes the performance space, inviting audiences to discover hidden stories, unexpected connections, and the vibrant lives of the people who call Rabat home.
About Female Economy
The theatre company Female Economy theatre consisting of fellow citizens, native and foreign, outsiders and neighbourhood nomads, has been in existence for 25 years. The group creates theatre to bring about a profound encounter with ‘the Other’ from each person’s autobiography. The theatre company is the initiative of Adelheid Roosen, the first multicultural theatre company in the Netherlands, and was founded by Elly Ludenhoff, Nazmiye Oral, Myriam Sahraoui and Adelheid Roosen. Female Economy consists of artistic director Adelheid Roosen and creators Nazmiye Oral, Myriam Sahraoui, Leendert Vooijce and Anne-Marth Hogewoning.
About Urban Safar (WijkVoorstellingen)
Female Economy’s WijkVoorstellingen, led by Adelheid Roosen, form a theatre concept that involves artists living together with residents of different neighbourhoods. In 2010, with the performance Zina neemt de Wijk, the first adoption by neighbourhood residents took place. This was followed by WijkVoorstellingen in Amsterdam Slotermeer (2012), Utrecht Ondiep, Zuilen and Overvecht (2013), Mexico City (2015), Bijlmer Amsterdam (2015), Ciudad Juárez in Mexico (2016), Amsterdam-Noord (2107), the AZC in Utrecht (2018), Teheran (2019) and Paramaribo (2023). In the autumn of 2026, this internationally celebrated theatre concept will, after the successful UrbanSafar in Tangier (2024), return to Morocco. In late October 2026, for a two-week period, five actors from Morocco will take up residence with five local residents in Rabat’s Medina and Kasbah Ayoudas. The gentle confrontations of their lives form the basis of the performance as a whole and the various scenes that sprout from it. Always with a belief that what you encounter in the other is the recognition of yourself. The scenes are played out in the homes of the ‘adoptive parents’. The audience is taken on an adventurous trip right through the neighbourhood and experiences daily life through the eyes of its residents.These performances offer a unique insight into the lives of local communities and are internationally recognised. Adelheid Roosen received the 2017 Gilder/Coigney International Theatre Award for her contribution to various societies. Other awards and recognitions include the Amsterdam Prize and the Van Praag Prize.
credits
CONCEPT
Adelheid Roosen
DIRECTED BY
Adelheid Roosen, Ghassan El Hakim, Marte Boneschansker
ARTISTIC SUPERVISION
Adelheid Roosen
ADOPTED PERFORMERS
Amine Naouni, Fazou Lahouitar, Hamza Boulaiz, Zouheir Ait Benjeddi, Ghassan El Hakim, Myriam Sahraoui, Leendert Vooijce
ADOPTED PARENTS
Rachid Aridod, Rima Toutain, Jérôme Malik Lehideux, Hamza Saber, Dalila Boudahra
NOMADIC PERFORMERS
Walid Rakik, El Mostafa Boutantike
FINALE MUSICIANS
Kabareh Cheikhats
PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Myriam Sahraoui
RESEARCH
Ghassan El Hakim, Amine Naouni, Hamza Boulaiz, Myriam Sahraoui
DRAMATURGY
Anne Heintz
PHOTOGRAPHY & VIDEO
Ghassane Kaaibich, Leendert Vooijce
PRODUCER (MOROCCO)
Kabareh Cheikhats, Siham Sendali
PRODUCER & EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR (THE NETHERLANDS)
Bregtje Bos, Female Economy
PUBLICITY (MOROCCO)
Ilham Tarikko, Hamza Hilmi
PUBLICITY (THE NETHERLANDS)
Rowyda Zakaria, Salien Oosterman, Fanny Kuitenbouwer, Lola Hernandez Garcia
A PERFORMANCE BY
Female Economy
IN CO-CREATION WITH
Fondation HIBA, Kabareh Cheikhats
WITH THE SUPPORT OF
Amsterdam Fund for the Arts (AFK), Performing Arts Fund NL, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands
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