The Dinner of the Damned is an immersive, sensorial journey into melancholia, blending storytelling, food, scent, and music together. 

Created by director Martin Butler, along with artist and chef Alice Héron and performer I-Chen Zuffellato, they take the guests on a contemplative, eight-course transformative experience. 

Each of the eight courses was created using spoken word, taste, scent, and sound, taking the guests through eight “real” autobiographical stories of conflict, famine, past loves, lost parents, future dystopias, and memories of childhood. 

The guests were invited to write down their memories and personal experiences, encouraged to confront their own shadows, finding reflection and connection in the shared experience of melancholic beauty. 

Melancholia, derived from the Greek words “µέλαινα χολή” (melaina chole) meaning black bile, is a concept that can be traced back to ancient, mediaeval, and premodern medical practices. It refers to a condition characterised by a significantly depressed mood, physical discomfort, and occasionally, hallucinations and delusions.

Historically, up until the 18th century, medical professionals and scholars categorised melancholic conditions based on their presumed underlying cause—a surplus of a theoretical substance known as “black bile,” often associated with the spleen.

Inspired by both traditional and unconventional knowledge, herbal wisdoms and remedies from all around the world, The Dinner of the Damned incorporates ingredients known for their mood-enhancing properties to battle against this black bile. Bitter sweet tastes mingle with a touch of darkness, reflecting the nostalgic ambiance of melancholy.

The dramaturgy of the evening is inspired by the Proust syndrome, when the sudden and vivid recollection of past events can be triggered by external sensory stimuli such as smells, tastes, sounds, or sights, where the taste of a Madeleine cake dipped in tea evokes a flood of memories from the narrator’s childhood. 

What is your Madeleine?

The project, as part of their Neo-futurist dinner series, was commissioned and supported by Mediamatic and its team and premiered in October 2023 with 750 guests over seven days.