On Feb. 26, Pitt State’s theater will have their opening night of “Endgame” by Samuel Beckett, an existentialist play about unhappiness and death. The production will run from Feb. 26 – 28 at 7:30 P.M., and Feb. 28 to March 1 at 2 P.M.
Linden Little, a communications professor who is directing “Endgame,” elaborates on the decision to perform a Samuel Beckett play, saying, “There’s a lot of interest in Samuel Beckett right now. I think, in turbulent times, like today, certain playwrights come out, and so Samuel Beckett is one of those.” Beckett’s plays include common themes of existentialism, futility, and human suffering.
Endgame as a play has no true plot; it is very conceptual because of Beckett’s minimalist style of writing.
“This is a very unusual play. There’s no plot. The characters are loosely developed. So, there’s nothing normal like watching a story. It’s like taking a bath in a language instead. So, it’s a little bit difficult to digest,” said Little, explaining his way of understanding “Endgame.” “I would encourage people to not try to wrap their head around and just experience it. it’s about having a relationship with the language of the characters and feeling that.”
Though “Endgame” is a one-act play, it brings many strong ideas for the audience to think about. The main characters are Hamm and Clov, with their relationship showing many of these ideas. Clov, being raised by Hamm and now a servant, is trying to get away and leave.
“With Hamm, he will very much, start on a conversation, it’ll end, and then he’ll be like, what about this other thing that’s completely unrelated to the current topic?” Taye Witherspoon said, a Pittsburg State automotive alumnus who plays Hamm. He elaborates on the character of Hamm, an old man who is at the end of his life and bound to a chair. “I originally auditioned for Nagg and Clov, because in my previous play, “Exit, Pursued by a Bear,” I was also in a chair for the entire show.”
To perform Beckett’s “Endgame,” it takes a lot of focus for performers to remember their lines with the large amount of repetition. This makes it so the cast needs to be in sync with one another.
“It’s a show that moves very quickly through everything and the way everybody has to interact and be comfortable to just jump in and run with things,” says Michael Fienen who plays Nagg, and is a Pitt state alum who majored in communications with an emphasis in theater. He continues, “You know, this cast is going to show off a side of that, that I think is very valuable to “Endgame” in particular.”
Just as the theater finishes putting together “Endgame” before their opening day, the performers are feeling confident in their abilities and good about the play. This being the theater’s second to last large performance of the year; auditions are soon to be held for their final play. Auditors for “Black Comedy” by Peter Shaffer will soon be held Wednesday, March 4 and Tuesday, March 5 at 7 P.M. in the Grubbs Studio Theatre, 103 Grubbs Hall.