THEATER

The Classical Theatre of Harlem: Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot

Directed by Christopher McElroen

“An unforgettable night of theater!” - Artforum

“A daffy, damp, surprisingly effective version…Who knew this play could still surprise?” - The New York Times

The tale that revolutionized 20th-century theater is given new life and meaning by Classical Theatre of Harlem and director Christopher McElroen. Set in post-Katrina New Orleans, this Godot gives a powerful immediacy, fully realizing the agony of waiting, as well as the irrepressibility of humanity, imagination, and humor, in a production Beckett himself would surely have admired.

CTH’s Godot was first performed this to outstanding reviews in New York in 2006. After seeing it there, artist Paul Chan, a former Momentum artist whose video projection 1st Light is in our collection, asked the company to join him in presenting the play outdoors in New Orleans’s Ninth Ward—the story of waiting for a deliverance that never comes was perfectly set in this community hard hit by Katrina. We are proud to host the Boston premiere of CTH’s production, travelling to a small number of cities on the East Coast this fall.