SAMUEL BECKETT
Waiting for Godot(a play in two acts)
The first performance took place in the Arts Theatre in London on 3rd August 1955.
CAST:
Estragon: A man who seems not to be very intelligent.
Vladimir: A man who is more intelligent, or at least, more rational, normal that Estragon.
Lucky: A slave, he looks like an old man, and he has had a bad life, he is exhausted and devastated.
Pozzo: He is Lucky’s master, owner, he orders and Lucky just obeys.
A Boy: Appears to say Vladimir that Mr. Godot is not going to arrive today, he will come tomorrow.
SPACE:
Space is a country road, there’s a tree on the middle of the stage, where also is a little mound. Therefore, the place where takes place the action may be anywhere.
TIME:
The play goes by the evening, but we don’t know the exact time when it happens. It may be anytime. About the time we only know that one day passes between the Act I and the Act II.
SUMMARY:
We can declare, after reading this play, that Waiting for Godot is, maybe, the most representative play of the absurdism, and Samuel Beckett the best absurdist playwright, because when I read this play, and also if I go seeing it, I don’t know what is going to happen in the next minute, and sometimes, what is going on when at the moment I’m reading.
The play starts with Estragon putting out his boots because they hurt him, then they start to talk, “there you are again” says Vladimir. We don’t have references, but the most important fact is that they don’t have either references. The situations are completely absurd, for example, they talk about a lot of things at the same time; they combine topics like the Bible and the feet pain, also the past. They also talk about themselves, and at this moment you don’t know if they are talking about the Bible’s thieves or about themselves. Over all the play they are waiting for Godot, and Estragon always doubts is there is the right place or the right time, which irritaters Vladimir.
When Pozzo appears they have a talk with him, and they are very surprised watching how he mistreats Lucky, but the amazing fact is that the next day, Lucky and Pozzo appear again and they don’t remember Vladimir and Estragon, and also Estragon doesn’t remember them, which is completely absurd, they have met the they before and now they don’t know them (we see that the second day Pozzo is blind, it may a punishment for mistreating Lucky). The same with the boy, the first day he talks with Vladimir and the next day he returns and doesn’t remember Vladimir, who will finish crazy because he can’t understand the situation. At the end, tired of waiting, they decide to committing suicide, but the belt is shorter that can’t use it, they think to bring a rope the next day because they have to return the next day again. They don’t move when they say let’s go, and we see that during all the play, always they say are going, they don’t move, another sample of absurdism.