The meanings of Samuel Beckett’s timeless masterpiece Waiting for Godot are never settled. This remains true in Dominic Hill’s revival, yet the uncertainty does nothing to diminish the production’s distinctive voice.
Everything in Jean Chan’s stage design cries out lifelessness. A backdrop stretches into a forward-extending country road lined with telegraph poles. The canvas itself appears distorted, torn open in places to expose the stage’s interior and scaffolding. At centre stage stands a leafless black tree — perhaps dead. Its trunk is oddly intersected by a small car-door window, creating the unsettling impression that one has forced its way through the other. Nearby sits what seems to be a matching car seat, its upper cushion propped awkwardly on a square frame. Dust coats the ground. The world feels abandoned and dismantled.
In this barren spot, two elderly men, Vladimir (George Costigan) and Estragon (Matthew Kelly), engage in an even more barren activity: waiting. The tramps are visually absorbed into the landscape, dressed in similar muted shades, their clothes palpably worn by time. They seem to have been waiting long before the curtain rises. The mysterious Godot, for whom they wait, shows no sign of arriving — and may never arrive.
Costigan and Kelly beautifully realise the duo’s affectionate yet tragicomic attachment. They quarrel constantly, needling and irritating one another. Estragon repeatedly threatens to leave but never does; Vladimir insists they must go on waiting, and that alone is reason enough. Their interdependence feels absurd, rooted more in necessity than in choice. Yet warmth seeps through. Vladimir rummages in his pocket to find Estragon a carrot, which is received with quiet gratitude. He carefully brushes the dirt from Estragon’s feet and helps him with his boots. Beneath the bickering lies desperation, but the humour lands, even if it carries a sting.
Time feels less oppressive when another pair intrudes. The condescending and abusive Pozzo (Gbolahan Obisesan) shatters the bleakness both visually and vocally. His flamboyant purple-and-yellow costume crashes into the muted palette, jolting the atmosphere as if even the frozen clock has been forced to tick. His enslaved companion, Lucky (Michael Hodgson), provides the production’s most haunting images. In Act One, his contorted body is positioned near the bare tree for most of the scene. His shape seems almost to echo its twisted form, becoming just as unsettling and skeletal. In Act Two, when the light falls on Lucky as Pozzo tightens the rope around his neck, his shadow stretches onto the tree branch, creating the chilling illusion of a hanging figure. This image recalls Estragon’s casual suggestion that they hang themselves to pass the time. Hodgson delivers Beckett’s torrential monologue with remarkable clarity, unleashing a startling burst of energy and emotional force.
Uncertainty permeates everything, deepening further when the young boy arrives with a message from Godot. He steps through a tear in the backdrop like an outsider breaching a fragile fourth wall. Nothing resolves; nothing reassures. Yet this revival finds its strength and vitality precisely in that irresolution and stands as a compelling reimagining.
Drama
Directed by Dominic Hill
Cast Includes: George Costigan, Matthew Kelly, Michael Hodgson, Gbolahan Obisesan.
Until (on tour): 14th March 2026 (Glasgow)
Running Time: 2 hours 15 mins including an interval
Photo Credit: Mihaela Bodlovic