Ernesto Pujol: The Listeners
The Kunsthalle Osnabrück invited together with city stages to the "Friedenssaal" (Hall of Peace) of Osnabrück's Town Hall on August 25. In the context of Lab Europe the European Heritage project, that brought young people from all over Europe to the city in August 2018, Ernesto Pujol created the group performance: "The Listeners". People aged 18 to 80 practiced quiet and attentive listening with Pujol for one week. During the cultural night on August 25, from sunrise to midnight, they lent their ears to everyone who wanted to "get rid of" something, tell a story or arrange his or her thoughts by speaking them out loudly. The Hall of Peace, in which the peace of Westphalia was signed back in 1648, became the important place to remember that listening is one of the most important skills in resolving conflicts. The performance contained different layers of performers: the ones that would introduce an audience to the concept of the performance and invite them to take part, the ones that would guide them to the peace hall and instruct them to the concept of “speaking” and “listenting”, and the listeners themselves. – I assisted to the first category of performers.