Conversations Lost. And Found.
It takes someone raised in the analog era to promote a series of live panel discussions called “Out of the Question: Reviving the Lost Art of Provocative Conversation.”
The much-lamented death of conversation invariably points to the digital domain as having created a dialogue-lite world. Google, people say, has dealt a fatal blow to the exchange of ideas, or the need for argument or Socratic dialogue, since any notion today can be instantly verified or denied. Besides, Twitter is how we debate.
Enter — or, rather, re-enter — Warren Strugatch, who, after a 12-year hiatus, is back with his salon-style conversation series, “Out of the Question.”
Beginning next Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Mr. Strugatch will host five panels between May and September, all to be held at the Southampton Arts Center. Each promises to bring together prominent East End residents for discussions before live audiences, tackling trends and issues in the arts, restaurants, architecture, business and economics, and politics.
“My goal remains the same,” said Mr. Strugatch, a former New York Times columnist who is the organizer and moderator of the series. “I want ‘Out of the Question’ to continue to be a forum for smart, articulate, and accomplished Hamptons people to bounce ideas off each other, off me, and off the audience. I see my role as creating a kind of cauldron for new ideas, where people of distinctly different viewpoints hash out and synthesize fresh perspectives.”
If the series is meant to hark back to the decadent French salons, where a skillful salonniere (think Gertrude Stein) directed creative lions to stimulate and enlarge intellectual life, then Mr. Strugatch’s series opener — “Real Estate: What’s Trending Now?” — seems to offer something more pragmatic. Panelists at the real estate summit will include the brokers Pamela Liebman and Zachary Vachinsky, and the developer Joseph Farrell.
Subsequent topics might prove to be more strident: “The Business of Art: Passion or Profit?” on June 8; “Restaurants: Where’s the Fork in the Road?” on July 13; “Architecture: Does Modernism Still Matter?” on Aug. 10, and “Is Our Democracy Sustainable?” on Sept. 28. Scheduled panelists for the series include Eric Fischl and Toni Ross, artists; Eric Lemonides, restaurateur; Paul Goldberger, architecture critic; Rick Friedman, art-market entrepreneur, and several others.
Amy Kirwin, the director of programs at the arts center, said, “This type of programming is an important part of Southampton Arts Center’s mix of cultural offerings. Warren’s series not only showcases local and diverse points of view, but creates unique and inclusive conversations. Audience members are welcome — if they choose — to jump right into the idea exchange.”
Mr. Strugatch himself strongly encourages audience participation, while stressing that the discussions be civil. In fact, he decided to bring the series back, he said, after being struck during the presidential campaign and election by “how impoverished and devoid of genuine interaction the national conversation had become.” He hopes that respect will prevail during the panels, both for the ideas expressed and for the people articulating them.
The original “Out of the Question” series began in 2003 at the Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center and moved to Guild Hall in 2004 and 2005. Panelists including the adman Jerry Della Femina, the author Steven Gaines, and Lance Gumbs, a former Shinnecock tribal chief, tackled questions such as “Are the Media Eating the Hamptons Alive?” and “When Did ‘Assimilate’ Become a Dirty Word?”
Following the 2005 series, Josh Gladstone, the artistic director of Guild Hall, offered Mr. Strugatch a glowing testimonial: “For two seasons he lit up our stage with conversations that ranged from the savvy to the sublime, catching a keen who’s who of Hamptons notables in candid, opinionated, and often surprising discussions. Warren’s provocative style, supported by strong research and a broad knowledge of industry trends, made for several illuminating evenings.”
Mr. Strugatch, an author, blogger, and business strategist, together with Cindy Smith, the series’ producer, promises that the format will stay the same: Bring together newsmakers and leading thinkers, throw out a few questions, then let the conversational ball be tossed around.
“It’s like an A-list party we all wish we could be invited to, just to eavesdrop on the conversations,” said Mr. Strugatch. “With ‘Out of the Question,’ everyone is invited.”
The Southampton Arts Center is at 25 Job’s Lane. Tickets are $15 and can be bought at the box office or online.