Reviewer’s Note: a nontraditional play calls for a nontraditional review.
I spent the better part of this past weekend thinking about “Endgame” and what it might mean. As far as time goes, it was a bit more than I expected and far more than I had budgeted. It was, however, completely worthwhile.
“Endgame,” I decided at long last, is about you. Sure, the characters do not necessarily look like you. They do not wear your clothes or mimic the sound of your voice. They do not go by any name to which you have ever answered. They are residents of a world unlike yours in almost every conceivable way. They are absurd, and you are not.
Yet, I maintain the play is about you. Don’t worry; it’s about me as well. It’s about anyone daring enough to walk into a theater with the intent to both listen and wonder.
Specifically, the play is about you and the comparative humanity of your existence.
When you experience pain, do you yelp, like Clov? Do you boast, like Hamm? Do you retreat, like Nagg and Nell? When you gradually lose the power of sight, do you reach for the looking glass? Do you squint? Or do you close your useless eyes and rely on your intellect?
You are, of course, distinct from the characters on stage, but you are unquestionably tied to them in profound ways. You know what it is like to feel trapped. You know how much power there is in the ability to tell a compelling story. You know the meaning of hunger and of a promise unkept. You know what it is like to call out to the person you need most and hear nothing in response. Most crucially, you know how excruciating it can be to contemplate an end, be it an end to a game of chess or an end to all existence.
Philosophical machinations aside, the acting on display in “Endgame” is powerful.
David Ledingham’s Hamm is raspy, permanently seated, but resonant and alive. “Can there be misery loftier than mine?” he wonders without prompting. He is power and vulnerability enmeshed, in need of affection and completely unwilling to give it to others. We are rooting for his end but when it comes we find it hard to watch.
Brian Landis Folkins plays Clov with sharp comedic timing. Only able to track one task at a time, Clov is meek and servile but given to beautiful fits of truth and bravado. Best of all, he is in cahoots with the audience.
TRTC stalwarts Wendy Perkins and Bob Moore play Nell and Nagg, the haunting couple who provide the emotional highs and lows of the show. Though their contributions pose unanswered questions, the play is richer for their presence.
The decision to stage “Endgame” must be commended as an act of bravery. In doing so, Thunder River Theatre Company, with Sean Jeffries and Missy Moore at the helm, is demonstrating remarkable range.
This time last year, TRTC staged an ensemble-based comedic romp with a rational plot and a heartwarming denouement. As a play, “You Can’t Take It With You” took us for a ride and demanded very little in return. It was a fun night out at the theater.
Conversely, “Endgame” has no rational plot, no familiar characters, no show-stealing love story and no changes in scenery. I have owned a copy of it for more than half of my life, and I have never once been able to read more than a few pages before losing interest. It has not been produced in the state of Colorado in more than a decade.
I could not take my eyes off of it.
TRTC’s production of “Endgame” has eight performances remaining: Feb. 22, 23, 24, 29, and March 1 and 2 at 7:30pm, and Sundays Feb. 25 and March 3 at 2pm. Visit www.thunderrivertheatre.com for tickets.