Theatre / Waiting for Godot, written by Samuel Beckett, directed by Caroline Stacey. The Street Theatre, until November 24. Reviewed by JOE WOODWARD.

Waiting for Godot is one of the most significant plays of the past hundred years.

This alone should compel audience’s curiosity to see what the fuss is all about. On a minimalist stage, the actors perform within an intimate proximity to the spectators. The text is at times jarring while allowing time to ponder. The style is clown-like in its physicality. The ideas are understated while at times evoking a kind of mystery. The result is a challenge to the very notion of theatre itself.

Only a very experienced cast is capable of achieving the demands of this play. With Christopher Samuel Carroll, PJ Williams, James Scott and Craig Alexander in the central roles and Sterling Notley as the Boy, The Street Theatre has assembled a cast well able to bring Godot to life.

James Scott presented an outstanding portrayal of the luckless Lucky. His grounded acting and powerful presence provided a not-too-common compulsion. He almost seemed sculpted into the ground; becoming a fixture within the barren landscape. His sudden changes in mood were frightening while maintaining a controlled poignancy at every moment. Scott’s Lucky has no option other than to accept his given status as “pig” obeying the voice and the constrictions imposed on every facet of his existence. Lucky has no options but to exist. His contradictory character gave a strange tension for the entire play; giving a source for Carroll’s and Williams’ sending up the hapless character at different turns.

Carroll’s Vladimar (Didi) and Williams’ Estragon (Gogo) began a little awkwardly with the physical responses initially seeming forced and tagged on to the characters. This meant that some of the comedy was diluted and rhythmically much of the first act didn’t quite gel as a whole. This changed in the second act where there was a much stronger relational bond between the two characters. This was particularly evident when Pozzo, played by Craig Alexander, re-entered with his character seemingly totally disconnected from his first appearance in Act 1.

Sterling Notley’s Boy utilised the shadows well; being the only character with direct contact with the unseen Godot, his silhouetted figure helped absorb some of the play’s mystery.

The cast played to the absurdity tinged with mystery particularly as the play progressed to its final denouement.

There are big dimensions to this anti-theatre piece. Its defying of theatre’s pre-defined structures of play development have been utilised for theatre ever since it first appeared in 1953. Seeing it performed on stage is a must for anyone with a sense of theatre history. Because of its place in the development of style and content, it might, paradoxically, seem dated for some people. However, The Street Theatre has attempted to inject new life into this seminal work of the 20th century.