The 10th Nights of Reading, organized for the fifth year by the National Book Center, will be held from January 21 to 25, 2026 (national dates) around the theme "Cities and countryside".
Several venues in the city are participating in the event and offering activities:
CITY LIBRARIES – 04 90 85 15 59:
– Wednesday, January 21:
* at 10:30 am – Pierre Boulle Library: Babblings
Sweet stories and nursery rhymes for toddlers (ages 0 to 4).
* at 14:30 p.m. – Ceccano Library: Escape Game: Let’s meet Ewilan
With your team, you will play as one of the heroes of Ewilan's Quest to travel through her universe and succeed in freeing her.
From 10 years old · Reservation required
* at 18:30 p.m. – Renaud-Barrault Library: Concert-reading “Inner Whispers” by Ensemble 44
As part of the "At the Sources of the Imagination" exhibition at Avignon Library, Ensemble 44 explores the shadowy areas of dark romanticism and symbolism, the intimate and the supernatural…
Samuel Bricault's flute is by turns lyrical, grating, or ethereal – in an interweaving of works from the classical and contemporary repertoire. It engages in dialogue with Camille Carraz's tremulous voice on texts from 19th-century fantasy literature, while Quentin Bonami's abstract and expressive videos intensify the atmosphere.
– Friday, January 23 at 14 p.m. – Ceccano Library: Literary Siesta
Come and enjoy a relaxing time in the library: sit down, close your eyes and let yourself be gently carried away to discover our selection of texts from imaginative literature, all with musical background...
For adults.
– Saturday, January 24:
* at 10:30 am – Renaud-Barrault Library: Babblings in the Countryside
Sweet stories and nursery rhymes for toddlers (ages 0 to 4).
* at 10:30 a.m. – Ceccano Library: Babbling From the city to the countryside
Sweet stories and nursery rhymes for toddlers (ages 0 to 4).
* at 14:30 p.m. – Ceccano Library: Workshop for little hands Imagine your city of the future
Come discover Albert Robida, an early 20th-century illustrator who imagined our world today. In his own way, he imagines the city of the future through drawings.
From 8 years old · Reservation required
* at 17 p.m. – Ceccano Library: Reading of the novel “Sainte-emmerderesse” by the author Audrey Alwett and the singer and harpist Ameylia Saad Wu
Audrey Alwett is the author of numerous comic books (including the successful series Le Grimoire d'Elfi, Le Jardin des fées, and Princesse Sara), as well as short stories and novels (including the Magic Charly trilogy published by Gallimard Jeunesse). Her books have been translated into around ten languages, and she has received numerous awards.
Ameylia Saad Wu is a soprano, harpist, composer, and arranger from Réunion. Having won awards at international competitions, she has been invited as a soprano and harpist to numerous festivals and cultural events in Europe and the Middle East. Steeped in her island, oriental, and Asian roots, and always inspired by the legendary character of the mermaid, tales, and world mythologies, she creates poetic and evocative music with her voice and Celtic harp, imbued with neoclassical, contemporary, world, and Celtic influences.
Meeting and signing after the show.
For adults – Reservation recommended
Free.
MAISON JEAN VILAR - 8 rue de Mons - 04 90 86 59 64:
– Thursday, January 22 at 18:30 p.m.: The Vilar Mystery and Other Texts
The first evening of the Reading Nights will begin with a performance of André Benedetto's play, *The Vilar Mystery*, performed by members of the Maison Jean Vilar's senior theater workshop, directed by Michel Lebert. The VoxPopulire association will then take over, reading a selection of texts. The evening will conclude with a friendly reception.
– Saturday, January 24, from 18 p.m.: History(ies) of the Festival
The Jean Vilar House continues its partnership with the Conservatory of Grand Avignon For an exceptional evening in several parts exploring the history of the Avignon Festival. In conjunction with the exhibition "The Keys to the Festival," it will highlight the voices of the directors who have contributed to making the Avignon Festival the event it is today, and those of the public, unique witnesses and active participants in this collective adventure. Let yourself be swept away by this singular history through the voices (and sounds!) of the students and teachers from the Conservatory's theater and music departments!
Free entry – booking recommended.
BIBLIOTHEQUE UNIVERSITAIRE MAURICE ALGULHON – 74 rue Louis Pasteur – 04 90 16 27 87 :
Jeudi 22 janvier de 19h à minuit : KADRAVESKI* : Parlez-vous l’argot du futur ? Jargons, patois et autres parlers populaires.
19h : Accueil autour de spécialités provençales
19h30 : Extraits du spectacle des Jobastres en Rodage
20h15 : Atelier « Inventons l’argot du futur » avec Louis-Noël Bobey
21h : Lecture musicale du Monde sans oiseaux de Karin Serres par la Compagnie Maâloum
22h15 : Atelier « Inventons l’argot du futur » avec Louis-Noël Bobey
23h : Open mic, venez lire, chanter, slamer vos écrits
Et tout au long de la soirée : jeu de mots de piste, réalisation collective d’un cadavre exquis, coin lecture et soupe à volonté ! (pensez à ramener un bocal)
MORE INFORMATION :
LES JOBASTRES
Balicchus et Romano sont 2 collègues, aux familles complètement fadades, à l’éducation parfois alternative voire même douteuse, mais aux fortes valeurs du sud et à l’accent chantant ! Venez découvrir le spectacle du duo Les Jobastres, anciens étudiants d’Avignon Université.
LECTURE MUSICALE
Une histoire d’amour fou aussi poignante qu’envoûtante, un roman écrit comme un conte, terriblement actuel, qui voit la fin d’un monde, puisque l’eau monte inexorablement et que la mort rôde autour du lac…
INVENTONS L’ARGOT DU FUTUR
Atelier sur réservation : mission-culture@univ-avignon.fr
OPEN MIC
Vous êtes invités à prendre la parole et lire vos textes, ou ceux qui vous inspirent, à votre manière : lue, chantée, slammée… Si vous avez écrit ou si vous souhaitez partager des textes sur l’argot, le patois, les communautés de pratique, les différentes formes d’écriture, ou plus globalement sur la thématique nationale “Villes et campagnes”.
Sur réservation : mission-culture@univ-avignon.fr
Municipal Archives – 6 rue Saluces – 04 90 86 53 12
Friday, January 23 at 17:30 p.m.: Family Gathering – Strolling Readings
Come and discover the dimly lit Municipal Archives building with your family. Listen to texts for young audiences that explore archives, history, memory, and intergenerational transmission… Comfortable shoes and a light sweater are recommended for this unique tour through the heart of the City Archives.
Ages 8 and up – Free
Registration is essential: archives.municipales@mairie-avignon.com (please specify the full names and mobile phone number of each participant, as well as the age of each child)
LOUIS VOULAND MUSEUM – 17 rue Victor Hugo -04 90 86 03 79:
Friday, January 23 at 18:30 p.m.: How to inhabit the world?
This reading, in partnership with the Voxpopulire association, offers you a journey through space and time, cities and countryside, through literary texts and theoretical reflections.
Free participation (suggested €10) – Booking essential (limited capacity).
Program subject to change.
CITY LIBRARIES – 04 90 85 15 59:
– Wednesday, January 21:
* at 10:30 am – Pierre Boulle Library: Babblings
Sweet stories and nursery rhymes for toddlers (ages 0 to 4).
* at 14:30 p.m. – Ceccano Library: Escape Game: Let’s meet Ewilan
With your team, you will play as one of the heroes of Ewilan's Quest to travel through her universe and succeed in freeing her.
From 10 years old · Reservation required
* at 18:30 p.m. – Renaud-Barrault Library: Concert-reading “Inner Whispers” by Ensemble 44
As part of the "At the Sources of the Imagination" exhibition at Avignon Library, Ensemble 44 explores the shadowy areas of dark romanticism and symbolism, the intimate and the supernatural…
Samuel Bricault's flute is by turns lyrical, grating, or ethereal – in an interweaving of works from the classical and contemporary repertoire. It engages in dialogue with Camille Carraz's tremulous voice on texts from 19th-century fantasy literature, while Quentin Bonami's abstract and expressive videos intensify the atmosphere.
– Friday, January 23 at 14 p.m. – Ceccano Library: Literary Siesta
Come and enjoy a relaxing time in the library: sit down, close your eyes and let yourself be gently carried away to discover our selection of texts from imaginative literature, all with musical background...
For adults.
– Saturday, January 24:
* at 10:30 am – Renaud-Barrault Library: Babblings in the Countryside
Sweet stories and nursery rhymes for toddlers (ages 0 to 4).
* at 10:30 a.m. – Ceccano Library: Babbling From the city to the countryside
Sweet stories and nursery rhymes for toddlers (ages 0 to 4).
* at 14:30 p.m. – Ceccano Library: Workshop for little hands Imagine your city of the future
Come discover Albert Robida, an early 20th-century illustrator who imagined our world today. In his own way, he imagines the city of the future through drawings.
From 8 years old · Reservation required
* at 17 p.m. – Ceccano Library: Reading of the novel “Sainte-emmerderesse” by the author Audrey Alwett and the singer and harpist Ameylia Saad Wu
Audrey Alwett is the author of numerous comic books (including the successful series Le Grimoire d'Elfi, Le Jardin des fées, and Princesse Sara), as well as short stories and novels (including the Magic Charly trilogy published by Gallimard Jeunesse). Her books have been translated into around ten languages, and she has received numerous awards.
Ameylia Saad Wu is a soprano, harpist, composer, and arranger from Réunion. Having won awards at international competitions, she has been invited as a soprano and harpist to numerous festivals and cultural events in Europe and the Middle East. Steeped in her island, oriental, and Asian roots, and always inspired by the legendary character of the mermaid, tales, and world mythologies, she creates poetic and evocative music with her voice and Celtic harp, imbued with neoclassical, contemporary, world, and Celtic influences.
Meeting and signing after the show.
For adults – Reservation recommended
Free.
MAISON JEAN VILAR - 8 rue de Mons - 04 90 86 59 64:
– Thursday, January 22 at 18:30 p.m.: The Vilar Mystery and Other Texts
The first evening of the Reading Nights will begin with a performance of André Benedetto's play, *The Vilar Mystery*, performed by members of the Maison Jean Vilar's senior theater workshop, directed by Michel Lebert. The VoxPopulire association will then take over, reading a selection of texts. The evening will conclude with a friendly reception.
– Saturday, January 24, from 18 p.m.: History(ies) of the Festival
The Jean Vilar House continues its partnership with the Conservatory of Grand Avignon For an exceptional evening in several parts exploring the history of the Avignon Festival. In conjunction with the exhibition "The Keys to the Festival," it will highlight the voices of the directors who have contributed to making the Avignon Festival the event it is today, and those of the public, unique witnesses and active participants in this collective adventure. Let yourself be swept away by this singular history through the voices (and sounds!) of the students and teachers from the Conservatory's theater and music departments!
Free entry – booking recommended.
BIBLIOTHEQUE UNIVERSITAIRE MAURICE ALGULHON – 74 rue Louis Pasteur – 04 90 16 27 87 :
Jeudi 22 janvier de 19h à minuit : KADRAVESKI* : Parlez-vous l’argot du futur ? Jargons, patois et autres parlers populaires.
19h : Accueil autour de spécialités provençales
19h30 : Extraits du spectacle des Jobastres en Rodage
20h15 : Atelier « Inventons l’argot du futur » avec Louis-Noël Bobey
21h : Lecture musicale du Monde sans oiseaux de Karin Serres par la Compagnie Maâloum
22h15 : Atelier « Inventons l’argot du futur » avec Louis-Noël Bobey
23h : Open mic, venez lire, chanter, slamer vos écrits
Et tout au long de la soirée : jeu de mots de piste, réalisation collective d’un cadavre exquis, coin lecture et soupe à volonté ! (pensez à ramener un bocal)
MORE INFORMATION :
LES JOBASTRES
Balicchus et Romano sont 2 collègues, aux familles complètement fadades, à l’éducation parfois alternative voire même douteuse, mais aux fortes valeurs du sud et à l’accent chantant ! Venez découvrir le spectacle du duo Les Jobastres, anciens étudiants d’Avignon Université.
LECTURE MUSICALE
Une histoire d’amour fou aussi poignante qu’envoûtante, un roman écrit comme un conte, terriblement actuel, qui voit la fin d’un monde, puisque l’eau monte inexorablement et que la mort rôde autour du lac…
INVENTONS L’ARGOT DU FUTUR
Atelier sur réservation : mission-culture@univ-avignon.fr
OPEN MIC
Vous êtes invités à prendre la parole et lire vos textes, ou ceux qui vous inspirent, à votre manière : lue, chantée, slammée… Si vous avez écrit ou si vous souhaitez partager des textes sur l’argot, le patois, les communautés de pratique, les différentes formes d’écriture, ou plus globalement sur la thématique nationale “Villes et campagnes”.
Sur réservation : mission-culture@univ-avignon.fr
Municipal Archives – 6 rue Saluces – 04 90 86 53 12
Friday, January 23 at 17:30 p.m.: Family Gathering – Strolling Readings
Come and discover the dimly lit Municipal Archives building with your family. Listen to texts for young audiences that explore archives, history, memory, and intergenerational transmission… Comfortable shoes and a light sweater are recommended for this unique tour through the heart of the City Archives.
Ages 8 and up – Free
Registration is essential: archives.municipales@mairie-avignon.com (please specify the full names and mobile phone number of each participant, as well as the age of each child)
LOUIS VOULAND MUSEUM – 17 rue Victor Hugo -04 90 86 03 79:
Friday, January 23 at 18:30 p.m.: How to inhabit the world?
This reading, in partnership with the Voxpopulire association, offers you a journey through space and time, cities and countryside, through literary texts and theoretical reflections.
Free participation (suggested €10) – Booking essential (limited capacity).
Program subject to change.
Themes
- Litterature
All dates and times
| Opening hours from January 21 to January 24, 2026 | |
|---|---|
| Wednesday | Open |
| Thursday | Open |
| Friday | Open |
| Saturday | Open |
Prices
Most events are free to enter.
