Word: beckett
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...hate words, I think words have...there's a line in Dream Play that says, "could words ever express your utmost thoughts?" That to me expresses a philosophy, expresses why I've done more Beckett than anything else, because of a frustration with language...
...Beckett was a friend and occasional secretary of his countryman and fellow High Modernist James Joyce, and Beckett's text echoes that author's characteristic wit and precision. In a sense the play is a dramatic translation of Joyce's project--the static narration of a moment of consciousness, undertaken merely for its own sake, without regard for the conventional rules of narrative or dramatic representation...
...moving dialogue. Vladimir and Estragon engage in an endless exchange of aphorisms and meditations that range from somber and melancholy to grotesque and inane. They are slapstick hobos in bowler hats and rags, lifted from the innocent genre of the cabaret and set down in the bizarre world of Beckett's imagination. They celebrate the play's nothingness and stasis through repeated gestures and expressions of absurdity...
...essentially a basement with low ceilings and no stage. As a result, Mike Hill's lighting for Godot is pretty poor. Production staffer Marc Friedman built an unremarkable set, consisting of little more than objects arranged to conceal the pillars of the basement. Although the spartan set conforms to Beckett's stage directions, it contributes little to the production. The costumes are also adequate but merit no special attention...
Given the difficulty of Beckett's text, the Cabot production of Waiting for Godot cannot be considered a failure. The play sports a few good moments and some excellent acting, but the sluggish pace and protracted staging prevent this production from being any more than a marginal success...