Wachten met Dirk De Wachter
Nov 30
Haagsch College
Waiting seems to be something we have unlearned, yet according to psychiatrist Dirk De Wachter it is essential for a dignified human life. In this evening, he explores how slowing down can create space for meaning, closeness and reflection.
Waiting as an act of humanity
- Date
- November 30, 2026
- Duration
- 105 min, no interval
- Genre
- Perspective
- Location
- Stadsschouwburg Amsterdam, Rabozaal
Waiting. In a world driven by speed and productivity, it has almost disappeared from daily life. It survives mainly as irritation in queues or slow connections, while distraction is always within reach.
Psychiatrist Dirk De Wachter argues for a reappraisal of waiting as a way of life. Not as emptiness or stagnation, but as a conscious form of attention and engagement. In grief, illness, love and success, the ability to endure time turns out to be essential for how we give meaning to our existence.
Through personal stories and philosophical insights, he shows that waiting is not passivity, but an active way of being in the world. What does it mean to live without constant expectation, but with presence in the moment?
Produced by Haagsch College
Dirk de Wachter
Dirk De Wachter is a psychiatrist and psychotherapist. As well as running his own practice, he is head of systemic and family therapy at the University Psychiatric Centre of the Catholic University of Leuven. He is the author of several bestsellers, including Borderline Times, De kunst van het ongelukkig zijn and Vertroostingen. His latest book is Wachten, een levenshouding.
Hizir Cengiz is a presenter and interviewer. He produces the interview programme Xizir for Het Nationale Theater
Credits
presentation
Dirk De Wachter
production
Haagsch College
