Appreciation of Samuel Beckett’s work is very much a personal taste, with opinions often divided. No doubt this production of Endgame will have its detractors as well as its champions.
Within a dark, grimy room sits Hamm, blind, unable to stand or walk and wanting to die. Around him Clov, his slave and possibly his son, begins the day’s routine. Frequent descriptions of the outside world as being zero suggest that some great apocalyptic disaster has befallen the world. Whatever hell lies outside the walls is no match for that which Hamm’s cruelty creates for Clov within them. The cruelty extends to his parents, Nagg and Nell, who having lost their legs, are confined to dustbins and fed dog biscuits.
The bleakness of the play as Hamm bullies and insults all around him has redeeming moments of comedy, both verbal and physical.
If nothing else the play is a great exercise that tests acting skills and this production has a cast that more than meets the required calibre. Paddy O’Keefe and Louise Preecy bring out the pathos of the old couple trapped in their metal prisons, while Sean Williams imbues a spirit of rebellion into the abused Clov, often giving his master as good as he gets.
But it is Nik Hedges as the immobile Hamm that dominates the production. He delivers an astonishing performance that is truly mesmerising - manipulating his voice he brings out the character’s many facets – aggression, whinging, plus the touch of a luvvy actor’s campness.
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