Thunder River Theatre Company (TRTC) is set to premiere the third show of its 2023-2024 season. This time, audiences are in for an exciting production of Samuel Beckett’s one-act absurdist, dramedy and minimalist play, “Endgame.” The show opens Feb. 16 at 7:30pm and will run for eleven performances through March 3.  

The play was written in 1957 and is one of Beckett’s most recognizable works. It is set in a bare room amid a post-apocalyptic wasteland. The characters consist of the last four people on earth: Hamm, a blind elderly man played by David Ledingham; Clov, Hamm’s servant, played by Brian Landis Folkins; and Hamm’s geriatric parents, Nell, played by Wendy Perkins, and Nagg, played by Bob Moore. The latter two lost their legs and live in trash cans. Throughout the script, the characters engage in banter while awaiting an unknown end.

“It’s one of the great plays of the 20th century, and it’s rarely done,” Ledingham told The Sopris Sun. “It’s amazing that TRTC is doing it. It’s a great team and cast, and we are looking to animate it in a way that will be accessible and fun for people. I think it will be like nothing you’ve ever seen.”

Directed by Roaring Fork Valley theater pro Renee Prince and assistant director Jack Trembath, “Endgame” engages audiences through simple blocking and intense dialogue that speaks to the complexities of the human experience.

Only one character, Clov (Landis Folkins), moves around the stage during the production. Nagg and Nell both live in trash cans, and Hamm spends the duration in a chair. 

“One of the biggest challenges is that they never move, and I’m always moving,” expressed Landis Folkins. “The Yin and Yang of that has been interesting. Hamm is a cerebral character, in his head and words, while Clov is a physical character.”

“The most challenging part of this play has been my blocking,” Moore joked. 

Despite the farcical humor present, Prince said that the production will leave viewers with plenty to talk about and reflect upon. 

“It’s a play that presents many questions but doesn’t present many answers. While wrestling with these questions, we as a team have discussed how art lives in that question space,” the director elaborated. “Some of those questions, on a collective level, include: What is our responsibility to one another? What is our responsibility to the Earth? On an individual level, we’ve asked: What will happen in the end? Will I be alone? And what happens next?” 

Perkins encouraged that folks “take a risk” and see this production. 

“I think people might shy away from this production because of the nihilism, angst and isolation it presents,” Perkins stated. Though it is not necessarily a happy story, she said it could give audiences a fresh perspective. 

Trembath stated that this show is timeless — another arching theme. He also delved into the process of working to find and highlight moments of humanity uncovered in Beckett’s piece, noting that such junctures were already accounted for in the script. 

“Despite [“‘Engame’s”] complex conditions, it gets down to raw humanity and grabs at it. We discussed not doing more than the play asks for from the beginning of the process,” he shared. “This show isn’t some experimental expression. We have focused on what it needs, as there are moments of humanity it asks for.”

For show dates and to purchase tickets for “Endgame,” visit www.thunderrivertheatre.com
or call 970-963-8200.