An immersive musical show based on La Haine at La Seine Musicale

Some films transcend their own era and outlive fads, not by chance, but because they continue to ask questions that no one has yet been able to answer. Released in 1995, Mathieu Kassovitz's La Haine belongs to this category: neither archive nor frozen monument, but a work that is still active, quoted, commented on and passed on. Nearly thirty years later, it leaves the cinema for the stage in La Haine ‘Jusqu'ici rien n'a changé’ (So far, nothing has changed), an ambitious musical adaptation whose second season is being performed at La Seine Musicale. The aim is not to replay a cult story identically, but to offer it a new space for expression, another form of presence, a living breath.

From the very first moments, it is clear that the show refuses to settle for an illustrated tribute. It breaks free from simple narrative reproduction: the day of the three protagonists – Saïd, Hubert, Vinz – is no longer told in traditional scenes, but in fifteen paintings indexed to the passing hours, as if time had become the fourth character, as if time had become the fourth character, relentless, precise, unstoppable. The audience is no longer watching a story: they are living it to the rhythm of an invisible clock.

Rap, urban dance and black and white scenography

The staging, by Mathieu Kassovitz and Serge Denoncourt, opts for simplicity and visual intelligence. Black and white tableaux, faithful to the film: not out of nostalgia, but to evoke that impression of unvarnished reality, where light seems to reveal rather than illuminate. The projections, designed by the Silent Partners studio, which has already worked with Harry Styles, Céline Dion and the Super Bowl, create a visual setting of great graphic elegance, where silhouettes stand out like modern engravings.

This time, the music is not a punctuation mark but an architectural element. Each scene is associated with an original creation, written by major figures in French rap (Akhenaton, Oxmo Puccino, Médine and Youssoupha), blending electro, global influences and contemporary arrangements, under the musical direction of Proof and with the historic supervision of Cut Killer. On stage, the actors also become rappers and singers, breaking down the boundaries between acting and performance.

The dance is edgy, urban and breathless. Led by Émilie Capel and Yaman Okur, it draws on hip-hop, breaking, freestyle and the physicality of the street to bring out non-verbal emotions that are sometimes more eloquent than a monologue. The bodies show what words can no longer express.

Of course, this show also talks about the suburbs. Not as a territory of study, but as a space traversed by anger, solidarity, dreams and tenacious humour. It does not shy away from clichés or violence, because they are, unfortunately, part of the reality of the present. But behind the tension lies the heart: friendship as the only possible homeland. The tragic ending resonates perhaps more today than yesterday, as it seems to brush against current events rather than shy away from them.

Should you go? Yes! On the contrary: go for it. Not to revisit a classic, nor to compare, but to experience the vitality of a work that finds new life on stage. Go with your teenagers, with those who have never seen it, with those who think they know it: everyone will find a spark, a question, an inner rhythm, but also a message of love. Finally, let's salute La Seine Musicale, which confirms, through its eclectic and daring programming, that a venue can be popular without being populist, demanding without being intimidating.

To see: La Haine – Jusqu'ici rien n'a changé, Season 2, La Seine Musicale, from 7 November 2025 to 4 January 2026.

Translated by Bethszabee Garner