Posted by Liz Niland on May 17, 2010
Waiting For Godot is, essentially, about nothing more than life itself. In explaining the tale of Vladimir and Estragon to my dear plus one, the closest modern narrative to which it could be compared is Seinfeld – to which, admittedly it bears very little resemblance. But similarly, Waiting for Godot takes the everyday of life and pulls, pushes and expands it into a two-hours-plus exploration of the human condition.
In the purest explanation, Waiting for Godot is a live-action rendition of the oxymoron “bitter sweet”. A yearning for young pink radishes exists alongside the contemplation of a hanging suicide, while physical and emotional abuse comfortably lay somewhere in between.
Let’s go. We can’t. Why not? We’re waiting for Godot.
Samuel Beckett has been, rather expectedly, asked in the past whether the “Godot” for which his protagonists are waiting is in fact “God”. And no doubt, when you see this production, this too will cross your mind. He has however, vehemently denied this definitive reading, saying that the one “Didi” and “Gogo” are waiting for is subjective to the viewers themselves. One person’s God is, after all, another person’s Buddha, which is, of course, another person’s Johnny Depp.
This particular production, playing until the end of May at Newtown’s New Theatre, is a classic rendition of the renowned, and oft controversial play. The by-the-book set by designer Gemma-Lark Johnson is perfectly suited to the smart direction by Luke Rogers, and in such an intimate theatre, it lets the story speak for itself. With a script that revels in the contradictory complexity of simplicity, nothing more than good casting and Beckett-style costuming and staging is necessary.
Patrick Connolly and Alan Faulkner fit the doomed and dusty two to a tee, while mind-blowing support is given by Steve McGrath and Peter McAllum’s Lucky and Pozzo. If you’ve never seen or read a Beckett, this is certainly the one to see: while confronting to the uninitiated, it will certainly make you laugh, cry or, at the very least, think.
New Theatre
542 King Street
Newtown
Tickets: 1300 306 776
Thurs-Sat 8pm, Sun 5pm.
Until May 29
Image by Bob Seary
waiting for godot, new theatre, samuel beckett, luke rogers, patrick connolly, alan faulkner