Khalid Lyamlahy holds a PhD from the University of Oxford (St Anne’s College) and his work explores North African literature in relation to political, social, and cultural debates in the region and beyond. His research on North African theater focuses on the experience of Moroccan playwrights and the conception of theater as a multidimensional art that combines literary forms, performance modes and elements of social and political critique. He is particularly interested in the cultural and theoretical relationships between literature and theater in the North African context.
Lyamlahy holds a Master’s degree in engineering from Ecole des Mines d’Alès (2008) in southern France, a BA in French and Modern Languages (2012) and an MA in Comparative Literature (2014), both from Université Paris 3 – Sorbonne Nouvelle. His academic work has appeared in Research in African Literature, The Journal of North African Studies, the Irish Journal of French Studies, and Revue Roland Barthes, as well as in collective volumes with Peter Lang and Classiques Garnier. He recently coedited the first Anglophone volume devoted to the interdisciplinary works and thought of Moroccan intellectual Abdelkébir Khatibi, published with Liverpool University Press. His first project, based on his dissertation, explores the concepts of revolt and nostalgia in the literary, theatrical and poetic works of contemporary Moroccan writers. His second project problematizes the notions of selfhood and otherness in post-2011 Francophone North African literature and aims to bring a critical perspective to aesthetic, political, and linguistic practices in the aftermath of the “Arab Spring”. His other research interests include contemporary fiction and poetry in French, literary and postcolonial theory, and translation.
Courses taught
TAPS 24612/FREN 26012 - Introduction to Maghrebi Theater
This course offers an overview of the evolution of dramatic art in Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia by examining key questions such as the role of popular forms, the borrowing from and adaptation of foreign texts and methods, and the relationship between theatrical writing and social, cultural, and political debates in the region. We will analyze staging and performance while exploring the ways in which North African playwrights rethink local histories, national cultures, and collective identities. Works studied include plays by Kateb Yacine, Mohamed Kacimi, Tayeb Saddiki, Ahmed Tayeb El Alj, Driss Ksikes, Jalila Baccar, and Fadhel Jaïbi.
Taught in French. All work in French for students seeking FREN credit; written work may be in English for those taking the course for TAPS credit. This is an introductory-level course.