There is no place like the Watermill Center, and there is nothing quite like the Watermill Center benefit—in the Hamptons, or anyplace else for that matter. Style is the operative word. From the dazzling, almost surreal entry, to the installations and performance art, to the gorgeous crowd and of course the food and drink.
Choreography is just one of Robert Wilson’s many accomplishments and he can apply it where he needs it. And that includes the tent under which dinner was served, or I should say, presented. A cadre of servers appeared at each table, working in unison, serving and clearing, like a corps de ballet or young cadets in training, and then moved on, back to the kitchen presumably, and then the next table. It was crisp, deft and nimble.
Food was served family style, in bowls and on platters, and though we did not use our fingers, it was simpler to eat than a typical plated meal. Which is a terrific idea at a large dinner where some of us are more focused on drinking and talking than on eating, and others are longing to tuck into a big dinner. Tapas for a first course included Serrano ham with figs, marinated wild mushrooms and white asparagus. The main course had beef tenderloin skewers, black sea bass, and some first-rate vegetarian dishes. Dessert was passed sweets back in the reception tent, with drinks and dancing—and art. Chateau Mouton Rothschild was the wine sponsor and the bracing white Mouton Cadet I was drinking was a great refresher on a sizzling night. Nothing lofty about it—but right body, right brightness, right citrus notes.