by Isadora Epstein

Letter 3

A letter concerning Francis Fay’s piece Whispers of Love

Dear fellow audience member/spectator,

Firstly it was dark, so I could be very wrong, but I am fairly sure you may not be able to hear. I am presuming this because, subsumed in darkness, you looked like this person I professionally served brunch to last weekend. The person who I served brunch to, who I think is also you, could not hear. I knew this because you/she had to lip read what I was saying and was using sign language with the person she was having a meal with. I forgot to bring you sugar, and I am sorry for that, but that is unrelated.

I was wondering what that performance was like for you? Two naked male bodies standing so close to each other in the dark is of course its own image. I wanted to ask you though because of the sound scape. The sound scape was pornographic. The performers stood silently, but with these sounds. It reminded me of overhearing your flatmate having sex and trying really hard not to be perturbed by it and blocking your ears a couple of ways. Those sounds, the classic grunts and gasps have a way of worming into your mind. Pardon my ignorance, but could you feel or sense those strange sounds at all? I was curious and I don’t mean to offend. You are probably sick of questions like that, I was just wondering whether sounds like that do operate on some different level?

All the best,

Isadora