Listening to Silence/Luisteren Naar Stiltes Episode 9: Vuslat Topal and Chayenne Atmoredjo

In this episode we talk to Vuslat Topal, a spoken word artist and literary theorist, and Chayenne Atmoredjo, a spoken word artist and family resource specialist. Both guests work with silence both as a topic in their poetry and as a method of performance. As a topic, they discuss silence as the space in which identity is formed in between languages, as a form of communication beyond words, and a a space and time we create for ourselves to process the past, and prepare for the future. As a method, silence can be a pause or a stillness used in a spoken word performance, to offer space for the audience to react, for example through crying or laughter, but also to reflect, as a way to think about the poem’s themes and messages. For both guests, silence is also the space between their poetry and their respective occupations, as an academic and family resource specialist. They use poetry to express that which cannot be expressed in these other discourses. They turn to poetry, when theoretical or therapeutic analysis fails. Yet, they both also try to incorporate poetry as an everyday strategy in their jobs. Listening to silence here means to become attentive to everything that is communicated between and beyond the lines, and to realize that silence is not an absence, but a world of meaning. This video podcast is a ten episode series and part of the research project “Listening to Silence: Silence as Empowerment in Dutch Decolonial Practice” (NWO Veni Talent Program, 2024-2028), led by Dr. Gerlov van Engelenhoven (Leiden University) https://gerlovvanengelenhoven.nl Produced by: MOSAIC Productions, Gerlov van Engelenhoven, Tessa Annelies van Kats Directed by: Grace Alonzo, Tessa Annelies van Kats Host: Dr. Gerlov van Engelenhoven (cultural theorist, Universiteit Leiden) Cameras: Grace Alonzo Sound: Isabella Nouvelot Subtitles: Tessa Annelies van Kats Artwork and Soundscape: Michelle Piergoelam and Finn Maätita Recorded at: Leiden University Humanities Campus Financially supported by: Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek (NWO) Gratama Stichting Leids Universitair Fonds (LUF) Leiden University Centre for the Arts in Society (LUCAS) Logistical support by: Leiden University Centre for Digital Humanities (LUCDH) Special thanks to: Thomas Vorisek