Review- Krapp's Last Tape

Last night, I attended a performance of Samuel Beckett’s “Krapp’s Last Tape” at the Duchess Theatre in Covent Garden. I had been interested in seeing this show for quite some time as it was on a seriously limited run (eight weeks) after transferring to the West End from Dublin Gate. Unfortunately I had also kept putting it off and realized that the run was due to finish this coming Saturday. As I was only available to see it on Tuesday night because of other events going on, I hastily snatched up a ticket and I do not regret that I did.

This play is strange. Needless to say, it’s Beckett. For those of you who are not too familiar with Beckett’s work he is an absurdist writer who really digs into the crevasses of human nature through very bizarre stage tactics. This is a man who has written an entire play involving two characters buried up to their chests in a hill (Happy Days) and therefore cannot move at all around the stage. This play (Krapp’s) involves one single character on stage for approximately fifty minutes. There are only a few hundred lines in the entire performance and there’s more to see in the physicality of the performance rather than the words themselves. The play begins in complete darkness with Krapp slumped over his desk…and he lays there. For one minute, than another, than another. Until finally there’s a slight movement of a finger…then a hand…and he picks himself up. The tone and tempo for this play is set. You discover throughout the performance that Krapp is a failed writer who takes the abnormal task of recording his voice on his birthday (described as the “awful occasion”) telling the story of the year gone by. He also has a penchant for bananas, in a rather humorous bit at the beginning, and alcohol. The stage is lit by a single light over his desk and the rest of the space is darkness. Krapp himself is disheveled, old, tattered, and slightly pathetic in the eye of the viewer. This makes it so much more intriguing to find out exactly what happened to him. Not a word is spoken on stage until about 20 minutes into the performance as Krapp manages to find his tapes, recorder, and a book chronicling his recordings. It becomes clear as a viewer that he’s looking for a specific tape (one from thirty years ago) as he reads out the exact box and spool with which to find it. The methodic placement of everything on his desk and the playing of the tape take a distinct air of ritual, he’s clearly done this before. Probably every year since he’s made that specific tape. We listen in to his ramblings on about life, his clear love for women, and the many drunken escapades with them. He has since unraveled over the years and he clearly wishes to be that “stupid bastard” he listens to year after year. One hilarious moment comes when Krapp becomes frustrated with the meandering of himself and suddenly becomes enraged and fast-forwards through the tape until finally reaching the part he was searching for. The description of a woman…a special woman of whom he clearly cared deeply for, and lost. As this begins to unravel Krapp even further we get a glimpse of the man he used to be and the man he has become. We empathize with Krapp for his heinous regret and unfathomed self-loathing that is blanketed upon the stage. What happened to him? We’ll never know, the play is over and it’s out of the theatre to ponder the life untold of this sad, old man.

The character of Krapp was played by Michael Gambon (the second Dumbledore in the Harry Potter film series). He played this character brilliantly and I have never seen anything like it on stage before. The slightest gesture, idiosyncratic movement, or step had distinct purpose and revealed more of this character than you could ever get from words. He saunters to and fro across the stage fulfilling his yearly routine as one who cannot perform the tasks he so readily tortures himself with as he could years before. This character must be played by an older man. The experience and age needs to be evident on stage. Therefore the usage of stage effects for age would only take away from the overall experience. I envy Mr. Gambon. His amount of stage experience combined with his age (life experience) is poured into the character and you can see Krapp as any person, even someone in your own neighourhood…it’s just that believable. He explores every part of the stage as if he’s been there before yet discovering it for the first time. It’s difficult to truly put into words this superb performance but I highly suggest if anyone reading this has an opportunity to see Michael Gambon on stage to do so, you won’t regret it.

The Duchess Theatre itself was also a wonderful choice to host this performance. It is a slightly older looking theatre on both the inside and out and is quite small compared to others in the area. The confined seating area only added to the richness of the performance. There’s an unrivalled intimacy between the character on stage and the audience watching him. Your immediate surroundings are dark and hollow much like Krapp’s and you almost feel like you are travelling on this journey with him instead of a clear separation between the two. It was quite a comfortable viewing experience and I will definitely be attending a performance there in the future.

I apologize to all of those who cannot have the opportunity to see this play. I’ve tried to do it justice in my words but I feel almost like Krapp himself, a writer failing to capture the world around him. It’s difficult with a play like this because so much of it is visual. To all those drama geeks out there, find this play! Read it, study it, understand it, see it if you can. And then read it thirty years from now and experience how much age comes into the understanding. This play is fraught with perpetual swings of emotion and leaves you with ample opportunity for self-reflection at the end. Krapp represents everything we as humans do not want to become in our old age and thus displays the fragility of life itself. Oh, how quickly life can deteriorate around us if we don’t hold on to what and who we love. We learn not to take advantage of the joys we have every day and leaving the theatre we owe this self discovery to a man who has unfortunately done just that.