Fragments
FRAGMENTS
By Samuel Beckett, Directed by Peter Brook
The Lowry, Tue 16 – Sat 20 October 2007
Press night, Tue 16 October, 8pm
Two of the giants of world theatre come together at The Lowry this month in a must-see event for lovers of drama. Fragments features five little-known works by SamuelBeckett which are directed by Peter Brook, one of the most influential theatre directors of all time.
The five plays, Rockaby, Rough for Theatre I, Act Without Words II, Come and Go Neither, were originally performed in Paris in 2006 to mark the centenary of Beckett’s birth. Revived by Peter Brook for a brief tour, they are performed in English by the talented Jos Houben, Marcello Magni and Kathryn Hunter.
Brook, who was a friend of the fellow Paris-based theatre-maker before his death in 1989, said of Beckett: “He peers into the filthy abyss of human existence, yet his life was a constant, aching search for meaning.”
Peter Brook has directed over 70 productions across the world. In 1971 he founded the International Centre for Theatre Research in Paris and, in 1974, opened its permanent base in the Bouffes du Nord Theatre where he has directed many productions including Sizwe Banzi is Dead which was recently performed at the Barbican. Author of seminal text, The Empty Space, Brook has directed opera for Covent Garden, the Metropolitan Opera House, New York and the Aix en Provence Festival. Theatre credits include: Marat/ Sade and A Midsummer Night’s Dream (RSC), The Mahabharata (Bouffes), Oedipus (Old Vic) and Le Costume (Old Vic). Films include: Lord of the Flies, Marat/Sade, King Lear and Meetings with Remarkable Men.
Irish dramatist, novelist and poet Samuel Beckett (1906-1989) is considered one of the most important European writers of the 20th Century. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1969 and elected Saoi of Aosdana - a prestigious Irish award - in 1984. His great theatrical works include Waiting for Godot, Krapp’s Last Tape, Endgame and Happy Days.
Posted on Monday, 15 October 2007 under Press Theatre Press