Endgame

The title Endgame is used for a 1957 play by Beckett and for a 2009 film about the negotiations between the Nationalist Government and the ANC.

= Endgame, the play (1957) =

Endgame, by Samuel Beckett, is a one-act play with four characters, written in a style associated with the Theatre of the Absurd. It was originally written in French (entitled Fin de partie); as was his custom, Beckett himself translated it into English. The play was first performed in a French-language production at the Royal Court Theatre in London, opening on 3 April 1957. It is commonly considered, along with such works as Waiting for Godot, to be among Beckett's most important works.

Performance history in South Africa
1968: Staged by CAPAB in the Hofmeyr Theatre as part of its lunchtime theatre programme.

1976: A multiracial version was done at The Space (Cape Town) opening 10 September, directed by Dimitri Nicolas-Fanourakis with Bill Curry, Keith Grenville, Chris Galloway and Molly Thompson. Designed by John Nankin and Adrian Kohler, stage managed by Tony Scholtz and Totti Ebrahim. Not well attended, possibly because of the riots and the fact that audiences may not have wanted to be reminded of the situation in the country.

1987: CAPAB October/November, Nico Arena, as double bill with Krapp's Last Tape.

1994: Staged by Asoka Theatre, directed by Shaun Gray, with himself (Hamm), Richard Sivil (Clov), David Wright (Nagg) and Loshani Naidu (Nell).

1997: Staged in The Laager, 11 February - 22 March 1997.

2010: Performed at the Intimate Theatre, Cape Town, in August 2010, directed by Luke Ellenbogen starring Guy de Lancey, Adrian Collins, Nicholas Ellenbogen and Liz Szymczak.

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