Marina Abramović: Seven Deaths

Why it is worth going

In seven films Abramović plays the woman who dies in seven operas, to arias sung by Maria Callas, with Willem Dafoe opposite her.¹ Cisternerne runs them as one sequence of about an hour, staged for its dark underground chambers; it is the first time the work has been shown whole.¹ Abramović, born in Belgrade in 1946, made Rhythm 0 and The Artist Is Present and received the Sonning Prize in 2023; the run ends on 30 November 2026, her eightieth birthday.¹ Cisternerne is open Tuesday 11 to 18, Wednesday and Thursday 11 to 20, Friday to Sunday 11 to 18, and closed on Mondays.² Tickets have no time slot, so there can be a queue at the entrance; a ticket is valid for a year from purchase.³ A ticket cannot be returned or cancelled, but it can be given or sold on.⁴ Adults pay DKK 120, students and anyone under 27 DKK 90, groups of ten or more DKK 90 each, and under-18s nothing.⁵

On 11 November 2026 from 18:00 to 18:15 the museum gives an open introduction above ground, free with a ticket; there is no registration and it takes 30 people, so arrive five minutes early.⁶ A group of up to 30 can book its own fifteen-minute introduction for DKK 450 plus entry, at least a week ahead.⁷ A cancellation later than a week before is not refunded.⁷

To have Cisternerne and the exhibition to yourselves, the museum offers a private visit outside opening hours: about an hour with an introduction, for up to 30 people, at DKK 5,000, or DKK 8,000 with a glass of wine from Orangeriet.⁸ Book at least 14 days ahead by writing to cisternerne@frederiksbergmuseerne.dk with your name, phone number, group size and preferred date and time.⁸ A cancellation must reach the museum 24 hours before the start, or the group is invoiced the full price.⁸

For a larger private evening, the museum hires out Cisternerne outside opening hours: all day Monday, and before 11:00 or after 18:00 on other days, after 20:00 on Thursdays.⁹ It takes up to 200 guests, fewer if the exhibition requires, and suits a short standing event, since the cold and damp make long stays hard.⁹ Write to lej@frederiksbergmuseerne.dk with a short description of the evening.⁹

The work is seen from dim walkways without railings, level with water ten centimetres deep, and there is no lift: it is the wrong choice for anyone in a wheelchair.¹⁰ The chambers are cold; the museum advises flat shoes and warm clothes.⁷