‘Westhead certainly held the audience’s attention strongly throughout the performance’
Director Stockard Channing combines with producer Alfred Westhead to serve up a interesting shift in the focus of Samuel Beckett’s revered play, although with it being a little hurried in places, it felt more like the opportunity wasn’t fully taken advantage of.
On his sixty-ninth birthday, Krapp (David Westhead), as has become his custom, hauls out his old tape recorder to review one of the earlier years, and make a new recording commenting on the events of the previous twelve months. Whilst his younger self speaks to reveal an idealistic fool, will the passage of time reveal the kind of fool he has become?
Almost seventy years since it was written, this one-act play remains as relevant – perhaps more so – when we all more readily identify with its themes of isolation, reflection, and loneliness following our experiences during the recent pandemic and its consequences.
Beckett is revered for his experimental use of new medium and it is interesting that the exploration of reel-to-reel audio type recorder technology, which was relatively new in the 1950s, has arguably only been augmented through our modern digital age: how long can a memory live for? Does it ever get erased? Who decides?
The staging was well considered for what I consider to be an intimate play, and any concern of it being lost on a larger stage were quickly dismissed as the audience enter with the scene already in place and very much focused through good use of lighting to achieve the desired effect.
In an unusual take, Krapp is portrayed as a slightly cantankerous but rather likeable old rogue and D Westhead certainly held the audience’s attention strongly throughout the performance. Whilst Krapp’s frustration with events came across well and evoked our sympathy, I wonder if there was a missed opportunity to draw out our sadness or sorrow at his behaviour, both past and present.
My other concern is with the silences which are important part of the passage of this play: so much is conveyed in those moments when Krapp is either contemplating or moves off-stage to get something. Here, they were moved though too quickly, in particular the opening with the bananas which has the potential to be so much more, whilst the off-stage sequences were hindered by the sound effects not being strong enough: yes, we heard a bottle being opened but we could and should have heard it being poured. Ultimately, for a play that typically runs between fifty-five and sixty minutes, this production was completed in just over forty minutes which caught most of the audience out when D Westhead stepped forward to take his deserved bow.
All profits from the performance go to The Wembley to Soweto Foundation, a registered charity providing photographic training and life-skills to disadvantaged young people, enabling them to move their lives forward and, ultimately make a positive contribution to the society in which they live. Further details and to donate at www.wembleytosoweto.com
Krapp’s Last Tape is currently on a global tour with further details available at https://wiltonpictures.co.uk/
Review Date: 9th September 2026
Star Rating: THREE