Silent Cocktails With Marina Abramovic

Imagine being at a cocktail party.  The kind where the champagne they serve is the good stuff, really good stuff like Veuve Clicquot.  And the food that is passed it cordon blue with raspberry chutney.  Good so far, right?

Now imagine that by design, the cocktail party is entirely silent.  You don't talk.  And even if you did, no one would hear you because you are all wearing noise-cancelling headphones.  So you walk around looking at other people--and they you--without speaking.  Sound fascinating?  Boring?  Funny?

Well, just that kind of party took place in Park City, Utah, as part of the celebration of the documentary about the performance artist Marina Abramovic, which is playing at Sundance.  And yes, Robert Redford was there and yes, for that hour, he was silent, too.

Now think of all the cocktail parties you've gone to where people talked but nothing important was said. Interesting to contemplate this, right?

Apparently guests at the Park City party loved it.  Or at least they were fascinated.  Some said once they got used to it they welcomed the silence.  A respite from the talkie-talkie business world in which they work.

Gotta hand it to Marina.  She knows how to stimulate conversation from nothing.  Or maybe that "nothing" is something pretty valuable: actually looking at one another and not letting our talk get in the way.

I like the concept of the silent cocktail party.  Not unlike a forced silent retreat, but with booze. 

Comments

[Coaching Go]

I would love to try this experience ! Hope she will be on a world tour soon !!!