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Waiting for Godot

November 24, 2023
Waiting for Godot
THIS EVENT HAS EXPIRED

Price

Standard: $90 to $125

Includes: $7 convenience fee

Location

Polonsky Shakespeare Center

“I once saw its stars, Michael Shannon and Paul Sparks, crack each other up onstage so hard that they had to hide under a blanket. If you think a little existential dread will make them behave, I’ve got a tree and a moon to sell you.”

― The New Yorker

“This Godot represents a reunion of two of the most unforgettable actors working on the New York stage. I’m expecting incredible things from this duo.”

― TheaterMania

“Especially exciting to have Michael Shannon take on the role of Estragon.”

― The New York Times

“One of the shows we can’t wait to see this fall.”

― New York Magazine

“I can’t think of two actors I’d rather see do nothing than Michael Shannon and Paul Sparks.”

― Observer

Waiting for Godot

Waiting for Godot

Description

Since their first appearance in a tiny Paris theatre in 1953, Samuel Beckett’s iconic down-and- outs Vladimir and Estragon have rarely been off the stage. Nearly every evening, somewhere on the globe, they show up for their dubious appointment with a savior named Godot who never comes, filling time with games and musing aphoristically on existence. Hilarious and heartbreaking, Waiting for Godot is the modern theatre’s indispensable document of rootlessness, uncertainty, and perpetually postponed deliverance. Godot will be directed by Arin Arbus (Resident Director, TFANA) whose critically acclaimed productions for the company include her OBIE Award-winning staging of Thornton Wilder’s The Skin of Our Teeth. This production will reunite actors Michael Shannon and Paul Sparks, who last worked together for TFANA in Ionesco’s The Killer, directed by Darko Tresnjak in 2014.

Design by Paul Davis Studio / Mo Hinojosa

View the Seating Chart

By

Samuel Beckett

Featuring

Michael Shannon as Estragon
Paul Sparks as Vladimir

and

Toussaint Francois Battiste as a boy
Jeff Biehl as Lucky
Ajay Naidu as Pozzo

Directed by

Arin Arbus

Scenic Designer

Riccardo Hernández

Costume Designer

Susan Hilferty

Lighting Designer

Chris Akerlind

Sound Designer

Palmer Hefferan

Choreographer

Byron Easley

Movement Consultant

Bill Irwin

Voice Director

Andrew Wade

Properties Supervisor

Jon Knust

Dramaturg

Jonathan Kalb

Fight Director

J. David Brimmer

Production Stage Manager

Shane Schnetzler

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Artist Bios

toussaint francois battiste

A Boy
A Boy: Toussaint Francois Battiste

Toussaint Francois Battiste (a Boy). Most recently Toussaint (“T”) appeared as Travis Younger, opposite his father in the critically acclaimed, Lucille Lortel winning revival of A Raisin in the Sun at The Public Theater, directed by Robert O’Hara. Based with his family in Sacramento, CA, Battiste is in the 6th grade.

jeff biehl

Lucky
Lucky: Jeff Biehl

Jeff Biehl (Lucky) Broadway: Machinal (Roundabout). Off-Broadway: The Unbelieving (The Civilians), The Merchant of Venice (TFANA), Life Sucks (Drama Desk Nom. Outstanding Actor, Wheelhouse), Catch as Catch Can (Page73), Charles Francis Chan Jr’s Exotic Oriental Murder Mystery (NAATCO), 10 Out of 12 (Soho Rep), Poor Behavior (Primary Stages), Burning (New Group), Isaac’s Eye (EST). Regional: world premieres at Yale Rep, Denver Center, Woolly Mammoth, and Humana Festival. Film: Relay (upcoming), WorthA Master BuilderRicki and the Flash. TV: The PathVinylMysteries of Laura, Forever, Southland, all Law & Orders. Juilliard.

ajay naidu

Pozzo
Pozzo: Ajay Naidu

Ajay Naidu (Pozzo) A veteran of many theatre productions, Naidu has been working with Theater Complicité, where credits include Measure for MeasureThe Master and Margarita and The Kid Stays in the Picture. He is a member of the LAByrinth Theater Company. His film credits are extensive, and he is known for playing “Samir” in the cult hit Office Space and was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for Rick Linklater and Eric Bogosian’s SubUrbia. His directorial debut Ashes won him best actor awards at the London Asian Film Festival and the New York Indian Film Festival. He has appeared in many notable television shows.

michael shannon

Estragon
Estragon: Michael Shannon

Michael Shannon (Estragon) is an Academy Award, Golden Globe, and Tony Award nominated actor. This is his third show at TFANA, having previously performed in Ionesco’s The Killer, directed by Tony Award winner Darko Tresnjak, and Denis Johnson’s Des Moines, directed by Arin Arbus. He also collaborated with Arbus in Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune on Broadway, alongside Audra McDonald. Shannon recently wrapped his film directorial debut, Eric LaRue, based on the Brett Neveu play that debuted at A Red Orchid Theatre (of which Shannon is a founder) in Chicago in 2002. Shannon recently starred opposite Jessica Chastain in Showtime/Paramount+ limited series George & Tammy. He is currently filming Jeff Nichols’ The Bikeriders, marking Shannon’s eighth re-team with Nichols, with previous collaborations including LovingHank the CowdogMidnight SpecialTake ShelterMud, and Shotgun Stories.

paul sparks

Vladimir
Vladimir: Paul Sparks

Paul Sparks (Vladimir) Broadway: Grey HouseHedda GablerTake Me Out. Off-Broadway: The Killer (TFANA), Edward Albee’s At Home at the Zoo, Buried Child, Dusk Rings a Bell, Essential Self Defense, Landscape of the Body, Orange Flower Water, Blackbird, Coyote on the Fence. Film: Upcoming: The BikeridersEric LaRueLost on a Mountain in Maine. Recent: The Lovebirds, Thoroughbreds, The Greatest ShowmanMidnight Special. Television: PhysicalJoe PickettWacoCastlerockThe Night OfBoardwalk EmpireHouse of CardsThe Girlfriend ExperienceSweetbitter. Six Drama Desk nominations in addition to Drama League, Outer Critics Circle, Lortel, and Emmy nominations. Winner of SAG and Independent Spirit Awards.

arin arbus

Director
Director: Arin Arbus

Arin Arbus is a resident director at TFANA, where she directed Waiting for Godot, Denis Johnson’s Des Moines, The Merchant of Venice starring John Douglas Thompson as Shylock (also at The Shakespeare Theatre Company in DC and The Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh), Winter’s Tale, Skin of Our Teeth (Obie), repertory productions of Strindberg’s The Father and Ibsen’s Doll’s House, King Lear, Much Ado About Nothing, Taming of the Shrew, Macbeth, Measure for Measure, and Othello. She directed Terrence McNally’s Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune (Tony nom. for best revival) with Audra McDonald and Michael Shannon on Broadway and Abe Koogler’s Deep Blue Sound for Clubbed Thumb. She has also directed at Canadian Opera Company, Houston Grand Opera, Chicago Lyric, Woodbourne Correctional Facility in association with Rehabilitation Through the Arts, and at Ristona Refugee Camp for The Campfire Project.

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