Showing @ Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh until Sat 25 May
Irish author Samuel Beckett is renowned as a playwright; his play Waiting for Godot heralded as one of the 20th century’s most important dramatic works. As well as theatre however, he also penned a number of short stories, one of which Judy Hegarty Lovett brings to unassuming life. An unnamed man (Conor Lovett) recounts (with some digressions) the circumstances surrounding his one and only relationship.
The tragicomic figure of Conor’s loner, unsociable and reclusive to an extreme, evokes pity despite his more unseemly characteristics. While not immediately likeable, he carries traits that are recognisable in friends, acquaintances or yourself. Conor stands solitary, bathed in a pale yellow glow with the rest of the stage doused in a mystic light-blue hue, aiding the dream-like concept of recollection. His plain attire, a dark coloured suit with hooded jumper under the jacket, feels slightly anachronistic; a modern fashion statement married with Beckett’s olden prose, but aids the linking of contemporary audiences with the by-gone actions being described.
The stage is bare (mirroring the character) save for a piano-stool type seat at the cyan parameter’s outer-edge, meaning Conor commands your full attention. He does this with some very understated direction. His movements are cautious, introverted gestures, trying to pace but with one foot rooted to the spot. These actions assist with Conor’s vivid and melodic delivery painting Beckett’s colourful language into a verbal portrait. His refrained motions and tones accentuate the times when he does pace or shout as particularly emotional parts of his account.
Because of the lack of set, Judy gets Conor to physicalise certain objects being described; most notably the repeated stoop with hands out flat whenever the word “bench” is spoken. Known for his extreme minimalism, this technique chimes with the rest of Beckett’s literary output. Although the overt plainness does occasionally drag, the intrigue created through Beckett’s detailed descriptions, the character’s bizarre nature and the humble power of Conor’s performance results in a captivating and poignant recital.
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