'Godot's destiny is worth waiting for

Every day becomes the woven thread in the tapestry of our eventual demise. Whether we choose to pass each day by waiting for night to fall, or to live each exhilarating moment with the fear that it may be our last becomes the major question proposed by "Waiting for Godot." In a pessimistic, yet very realistic, view of the world, Samuel Beckett brings together four men in a dark vision of life.

Beckett's tragi-comedy is set on a lonely road in the middle of everywhere. The only physical decoration adorning the atmosphere is the dead carcass of a brave tree. Vladmir and Estragon, two vagrants looking to meet up with a man named Godot, decide to rest their journey at this spot in the road. The fast-paced dialogue between the men becomes the concentration of the play.

Courtesy of Stratford Festival Stephen Ouimette, James Blendick and Tom McCamus await their impending doom in "Waiting for Godot."

Dim-witted exchanges between the men become brilliant offerings of philosophical amazement. Not only do these bums bicker over what to do, they question their inborne need to find constant entertainment.

Half way into Act One the chances of passing time quickly double when two more characters are introduced: Pozzo, a wheezy old man, and Lucky, his enslaved mute. The interaction between the four men becomes a complex oral manipulation of life and its raison d'etre. By the time the men stop arguing, the day has passed and so has Godot. A boy messenger finds them bemused, and informs them that Godot will not make it today, but to hold on until tomorrow.

The current production at the Stratford Festival is an encore presentation from the 1996 season, which drew rave reviews and immediate sell-outs. The cast is the same as the '96 production, and not a change has been made to alter their classic performances.

Opening the play in the style of a 1920's vaudevillian show, director Brian Bedford chose the festival's Tom Patterson Theater stage to enshrine his Beckettian world. Before the opening curtain, an old Victrola record bounces and skips to the beat of the Jazz Era. Vladimir and Estragon emerge wearing black Boler-brimmed hats, á la Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin.

Stephen Ouimette as Estragon fits like a good worn shoe. A small, spindly man, Ouimette appears to be a weak buzzard, but his timing is perfect as his jaws grab hold of Beckett's sarcastic dialogue and twist it into the art which makes "Godot" a modern classic. The mental confusion of his character is showcased, as opposed to Tom McCamus' Vladimir, who possesses a more secure belief in the meaning of life.

As Lucky, Pozzo's slave, Tim MacDonald delivered an outstanding tirade of conscious thought. His full four minute monologue jolted the essence of Beckett into the witness of the audience. As random as life is, Beckett sadly shows the world the importance of an extreme existence. The blind Pozzo, played by James Blendick, brought out the foolish intimacies with which Beckett uses to paint his human canvas. Blendick's prominent baritone makes for a natural orator, giving Pozzo a respectful, adult feeling.

The comedic timing between McCamus and Ouimette is superb. Beckett's script demands brevity and wit of its actors. The brilliant interpolation between McCamus and Ouimette makes this Stratford production a theatrical life lesson.

At the end of the second day, Godot's messenger arrives again to reannounce his former message. Playing upon Beckett's idea that each and every day, although a separate experience, is like every other, the men learn that the boy doesn't remember the previous day and that Godot will surely come tomorrow.

Questioning death and the inevitable lull towards such a future, Estragon arrives at a possible solution to end the suffering of waiting out each long day. Suicide seems the healthiest companion in this waiting room; taking control of one's own destiny warrants the best possible exit from this bitch of an earth.

"Waiting for Godot" plays through Sept. 19 at the Tom Patterson Theater in Stratford, Ontario. Call 1-800-567-1600 for more information.

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