World famous duo heads to SA for talking tour on love

Esther Perel will join David Whyte to share some insights into modern love on their first South Africa tour together next month.

“I believe that the quality of our relationships determines the quality of our lives,” says Perel who is recognised as one of the world’s most original and insightful voices on modern love.

Fluent in nine languages, Esther is a global psychotherapist, New York Times bestselling author and her celebrated TED Talks have garnered more than 28 million views.

Esther Perel. Picture: Karen Harms

Joining her at events in Johannesburg and Cape Town in October is Whyte, an internationally acclaimed poet and author of nine books of poetry, a book of essays beloved by Brain Pickings, Maria Popova and acclaimed author Elizabeth Gilbert, and three books of prose exploring the nature of work and relationships in human life.

Perel and Whyte will bring to these sessions their own unique blend of philosophy, insight and experience as they talk about the Paradox and Poetry of Modern Love: Keeping Desire Alive amid A World of Distractions and Difficulties.

Relationships are going through a complex cultural shift. Expectations on intimate partnerships are at an all-time high, yet we lack the tools, resources, and the imagination to navigate this new territory.

Perel and Whyte will shine a light on the state of modern love and the interplay of love, lust and commitment.

David Whyte. Picture: Scott Garen

Whyte was last in South Africa two years ago and enjoyed sell-out events in Cape Town and Johannesburg with his talk entitled A Timeless Way: The Art and Practice of Deepening Any Conversation.

Perel will be in South Africa for the first time, following recent sell out talks in Paris and Sydney.

Perel’s first book, Mating in Captivity: Unlocking Erotic Intelligence, has been translated into nearly 30 languages and her newest book, The State of Affairs: Rethinking Infidelity, hit the New York Times bestseller list upon release in 2017.

A journalist writing for the New York Times said: “Perhaps not since Dr Ruth commandeered American airwaves in the 1980s has there been a public figure with so much of an audience for her work on human sexuality”.

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