'Waiting for Godot' at WAMS - My Review

The students at WAMS took on a monumental task when they decided to produce Waiting for Godot. Principal/Producer Leo P. Lavallee notes in the program that the play by Samuel Becket has been called the most significant English language play of the 20th century.

It follows a pair of men who divert themselves while waiting expectantly, vainly for someone named Godot to arrive. They claim he's an acquaintance but in fact hardly know him, admitting that they would not recognize him when they do see him. To occupy the time they eat, sleep, converse, argue, sing, play games, exercise, swap hats, and contemplate suicide--anything to 'hold the terrible silence at bay.'

Mr. Lavalle then, as he always does, goes on to thank the theatre department faculty and notes "their unwavering dedication to holding their students to the highest standards of excellence while maintaining the dignity and individuality of each student is unparalleled." As a teacher, I admire his appreciation of the faculty that he supervises; moreover, his notation of holding the students to the highest standards echoed in my head as I watched these teens present this "most intriguing play."

I had the pleasure of meeting director Nina A. Smith before the performance and in her notes she reveals that the she and all the students involved in the play "immersed themselves in Becket's world; [they] established its life, breath, and humor--first and foremost. In [their] study of music hall comedy, Charlie Chaplin, Laurel & Hardy, and Buster Keaton, the students found the juxtaposition between the comic and the tragic." Ms. Smith has directed the cast with a keen eye to detail and the look of the two-act show clearly reflects what they had studied in class.

This cast is so very impressive. All the male roles were played by young ladies without apology.  Junior Emily Hazelton (last seen as Penny in the comedy You Can't Take It With You at WAMS) plays the lead role of the bombastic Vladimir; with a crushing number of lines and a beautifully staged song that she sings acapella, this young "theatre junkie" has tons of talent. Her sidekick Estragon is played to gentle perfection by Sophomore Saira Muhammed in her mainstage debut in a leading role.

Junior Michelle Briney of Naugatuck sharply plays Pozzo, a very loud character who interacts with the two and the lovely Olivia Blazas, of Naugatuck and a sophomore at WAMS, plays Lucky with a great costume and lots of heavy props. Sophomore Isaac Hutchinson (You Can't Take It With You) of Naugatuck and Freshman Jayde Blanchette round out the cast as "boys."

The set for the show is quite amazing. A huge abstract gold tree, designed by four students, dominates the stage and binary code radiates from the center of the back of the stage. Catwalks above the Apron stage are also utitlized effectively. The costumes, hair and makeup are at a professional level, as is the superb lighting.

This piece is highly stylized and very unique; some might say that it is theatre that is "good for you," much like vegetables in one's diet. Some avoid Shakespeare for the same reason, although having been raised in Straford and therefore, on The Bard, I would disagree. Even if the theatergoer doesn't understand every nuance of the play, they can't help but be impressed by the quality of the production put on by these students whose abilities are well beyond their years.

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Upcoming WAMS Theatre Department Main-Stage Shows

In the Heights at the Palace Theatre
April 5, 6, and 7, 2013

The Fantasticks
Apron Stage at WAMS
May 2, 3 and 4, 2013