Flabbergast Theatre's production of Samuel Beckett's 'Endgame' is currently being staged at the Pleasance at EICC in Edinburgh. The company, which specialises in physical comedy, has incorporated clowning into the tragicomic play.
Director Henry Maynard also takes on the role of Hamm, with Simon Gleave playing Clov. Derek Elwood and Annabel Arden portray the characters of Nagg and Nell. The production's set includes Clov's kitchen on stage, while Hamm is positioned centrally, with high windows showing a perilous external landscape.
The interpretation leans into slapstick, which a review notes lightens the material and undercuts some of the tragedy, though a sense of loneliness is still conveyed. The production highlights the misery of the survivors and suggests that storytelling becomes a reason for their continued existence.