“There's no coming to consciousness without pain.” wrote Carl Jung, but in his masterpiece, Waiting for Godot, Samuel Beckett explores the pain that results from consciousness itself. Set in a bleak nowhere, this absurdist drama engages the most fundamental of questions, the unknowable meaning of existence. Estragon and Vladimir pass their time waiting for a revelation that always lies in the future, and in the interim they engage in a conversation that distracts them and gives temporary purpose to their lives. Their bickering and reflections cover a wide variety of topics including religion and relationships and provide a trenchant parody of human interaction. When two wayfarers pass by, these travellers provide diversion, but not company, for the duo. Pozzo and Lucky are yoked together in what seems to be a parody of the socio-political world which the two hobos, Estragon and Vladimir, exist outside of. It is noteworthy that in the second act when Pozzo and Lucky's condition has declined, the natural world represented by the single tree on stage is now mindlessly flourishing. The world of human social constructs degenerates while nature goes through its cycle, but there is no relief for those who wait. Still, they cling to each other and to life. Beckett's piece has lots of grim humour and some silly riffs on common clichés like putting on "one's thinking hat" and "if the shoe fits," but it is not an easy work to mount in a manner that maintains audience engagement. The repetitive nature of the narrative is the point of the work, but this can also lead to tedium or just switching off. However, this latest production succeeds extremely well at both continuing to engage and to amuse. Ben Whishaw and Lucian Msamati both do a masterful job of drawing all the humour there is out of the work, and they also create a touching chemistry between them that is often absent in the playing of these roles. In fact, they manage to offset the rather dark message of Beckett's meditation on the human condition through the very obvious bond between them. Jonathan Slinger also puts in a first-rate performance as Pozzo, while Tom Edden's Lucky is an amazingly unsettling presence. His delivery of his character's signature speech is a triumph. For theatregoers who may have hesitated to see Waiting for Godot because of its reputation for being dryly intellectual or disturbingly depressing, here's the production that should assuage your concerns. This is a rendition of Samuel Beckett's chef-d'oeuvre that no one should miss!
Rated: ★★★★★
Reviewed by J.C.
Photo by Marc Brenner
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