Waiting for Godot

Synopsis

Vladimir and Estragon are waiting. Two old men whose compulsion to wait for a visit from the indescribable Godot forces them to pass the time in the only way they can; with and for each other. Stories are told, boots are abandoned, religion is debated, memories of better days are shared - and time passes. Jokes are made, songs are sung, suicide is contemplated, the fear of being alone is overwhelming - and time passes. Chance meetings happen, arguments take place, thinking occurs, violence is advocated, hats are exchanged, friendship is venerated - and time passes. On a road with a single tree two old friends wait... and pass the time. The 1953 drama was voted the most significant play of the century by a poll undertaken by the National Theatre in 1998.

Our Review:

10 October 2006

Better late than never. Peter Hall’s anniversary Theatre Royal Bath production of Samuel Beckett’s masterpiece – he directed the first production in English at the Arts Theatre in 1955 – was kept out of London last year by the Gate, Dublin, and the Barbican, who jointly held the rights in the capital. As it turned out, the Gate production was a shop-worn, mechanical affair, the least memorable item in the Beckett season.

Justice is done in a two-month season at the New Ambassadors with this pitch-perfect version of a play that now seems almost comforting in its long sigh of nihilism. “How time flies when one has fun” is a phrase you might drop while standing in a bus queue or watching paint dry. When Beckett’s Vladimir utters it, he is gleaning a small crumb of consolation in the enveloping void.

Beckett saw Vladimir and Estragon as a clown-like double act. It was Hall who invented the tramp personae. The clown tramp now seems the definitive line of interpretation, alth...

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Latest User Review

194.203.94.252) - 17 November 2006:

Could you ask for any more from an actor? Absolutely superb acting by all the performers - This is what acting is all about. Fabulous Direction ( would you expect anything less) Terribly funny and moving at the same time. For those who didn't like it;- They simply didn't understand it. Lets' hope this production returns again the West end. Well done to all concerned. ...

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