We round up the reviews for Jamie Lloyd’s latest production starring Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter.
New York Times: “It isn’t that Reeves and Winter are underprepared; they have done their research, and diligently. But they have not yet reached the point at which they can let that scaffolding fall away as they slip at last into the skin of their characters.”
Digital Journal.com: “It is a weird, difficult and meandering play. From these two actors, Alex Winter gives a more heartfelt and resonant performance, and does a solid job with the material that he has.”
Time Out: *** “This revival’s real strengths are elsewhere, however. Lloyd’s choice that all of the props be mimed, from turnips to whips, emphasizes the ephemerality of the play’s world and sometimes yields fascinating results. And Soutra Gilmore’s striking, beautiful set is radically different from the usual ones, which have tended to abide by the conventions set by the persnickety Beckett estate. “
Observer.com: “There’s more to savor than the brutalist design and snappy delivery: remarkable chemistry between the two leads, now in their early sixties with decades of film work behind them. The palpable affection between Reeves and Winter, and their scrupulous attention to the musical rhythms of Beckett’s demanding text, leads to a gentler, more vulnerable Didi and Gogo. Lloyd mikes the actors, so the line readings have a cinematic intimacy that gets under your skin. “
The Wrap: “It is not a performance, and Reeves very studied and mannered delivery of his lines is enough to ban the word “staccato” from Webster’s.”
The Guardian: *** “The reunion of Winter and Reeves provides a shiny, pleasing lacquer of nostalgia over the proceedings, their comedic chemistry still unmatched and irreproducible. The two longtime friends lend lines such as “together again at last …” a jolt of delight, with a couple extra-textual treats to boot. (Within the echoey void designed by Ben and Max Ringham, you can almost hear a faint “dude …”) It’s Bill & Ted gone philosophical, Winter the crotchety, cerebral stick in the mud and Reeves the stilted follower; watching them together, allowed to indulge in the play’s opportunities for slapstick, bandying about the tube with occasional chest bumps, you might find yourself believing in something.”
New York Post: “Acting aside, this is one of Lloyd’s better dramatic efforts. He boldly does away with the typical “Godot” aesthetic of gray emptiness and an ominous tree in the back. Instead, designer Soutra Gilmour’s set is a bright, giant wooden cylinder that looks like something Timothée Chalamet might pilot in “Dune.” “
Variety: “In the current dystopia, this evergreen play and provocative production may just be worth the wait.”
Hollywood Reporter: “Winter has the strongest moments as the more grounded Didi, deep in contemplation throughout the eternal anticipation of Godot’s arrival but more resigned each day to the reality that salvation in the guise of that mysterious entity or any other will not be coming.”
NYStageReview: *** “The actors manage to hold their own, although their lack of seasoned stage chops is made more evident by the excellent supporting turns from theatrical veterans Brandon J. Dirden, mesmerizing as a Southern-accented Pozzo, and Michael Patrick Thornton, arresting as a wheelchair-bound Lucky.”
Slant Magazine: ” If there’s a deeper meaning bleeding out from Lloyd’s revival, perhaps it’s this production’s exploration of how desperately we try to grapple with the passing of time, toiling to turn each ephemeral moment into a scene worth playing.”
Theatrely.com: “Their finely tuned performances are unshowy and completely in service of the production. They’re neither vaudevillians clowning for our enjoyment nor thespians hamming up each ponderous line. Reeves and Winters’ work is quiet and grounded entirely in their genuine chemistry. When they share a quick hug at the top of Act 2, after a whole day of waiting has come and gone fruitlessly, it reveals a profound knowledge that they can find comfort in each other.”
Entertainment Weekly: “Lloyd’s Godot makes plenty of fascinating choices, some more effective than others. The characters often stare back at the audience; the tree is nowhere to be seen; the props are pantomimed; and there is a throwaway reference to Bill & Ted, equally likely to elicit chuckles as it is to yank you from the play’s subject matter back into a world where you’re staring at Reeves and Winter’s reunion rather than Vladimir and Estragon’s despair.”
New York Theatre Guide: “Broadway rookie Reeves (The Matrix, John Wick) shelves his surfer-dude charm to evoke melancholy as a man motoring on anxiety. He gamely throws himself around the set like a rag doll. Winter, who acted on Broadway as a kid in Peter Pan and The King and I, brings an impressive gravity as the deep-thinking Didi, who’s prone to contemplative dives.”
Deadline: “As for the acting, there’s little doubt that Winter is the most natural (and more experienced) stage actor of the two, more versatile and, when necessary, capable to drawing real pathos from this grim, gorgeous work of art. You believe his every changing mood. Reeves, as they say, is Reeves, an exceedingly charming actor who projects more than he acts but always seems to have full control of an audiences’ attention (and affection). Yes, even when he seems to be trying too hard to be stentorian or angry or carrying out a bit of slapstick tantrum, he has us rooting for him.”
To book tickets visit: https://godotbroadway.com/