What Where, Footfalls, Come and Go, And Rockaby

Synopsis

During 1999 and 2000 all 19 of Samuel Beckett’s stage plays were filmed for television, and brought together a distinguished range of directors and actors. This tape combines WHAT WHERE, FOOTFALLS. COME AND GO, and ROCKABY.

Series

Beckett on Film Series

Language

English

Country

Great Britain

Year of release

2002

Year of production

1999

Notes

All 19 plays in the series and also a documentary on the filming of the dramas, interviews with their distinguished directors, a stills gallery with commentary and a souvenir programme are available in a boxed set of 4 DVDs. Duration: 10hrs 47mins price $149.99. Follow the links at http://www.beckettonfilm.com/beckett_dvd.html

Documentation

More information about the series is given on the website www.channel4.com/beckett. A booklet containing a collection of quotations from some of those involved in the series, as well as information on Beckett and his work is available separately, price £4.95 (ref. 312000) Programme notes giving a programme outline, background and links for each play are available at http://www.channel4.com/learning/main/netnotes/programid1968.htm

Subjects

Drama

Keywords

Beckett, Samuel (1906-1989); drama - contemporary

Distribution Formats

Type

VHS

Price

£19.99

Availability

Sale

Duration/Size

60 minutes

Year

2003

Sections

Title

What where

Synopsis

In WHAT WHERE written in English in 1983, four characters appear at intervals, all dressed in the same long grey gowns with the same long grey hair. Bam controls and interrogates the others, sending them off ‘to confess’ to an unnamed crime. A seasonal cycle from spring to winter passes in the course of the play, with Bam repeating the same questions and actions.

Duration

12 mins

Title

Footfalls

Synopsis

Footfalls was written in English between March and December 1975. May, wrapped in tatters, paces back and forth engaging in conversation with the disembodied voice of her mother. In the second scene, May’s voice becomes subsumed into her mother’s. She paces ever more slowly as the play progresses, and the light dims, so that by the fourth and final scene there is no trace of her.

Duration

26 mins

Title

Come and go

Synopsis

Written in English in 1965, this piece has only 121 words in all. Beckett’s note to the text is almost twice as long. Three women meet in a softly lit place. Seated on a bench facing the audience, they reminisce about old school days. Each woman leaves the stage briefly, and during each absence an appalling secret is whispered about the third - which the audience doesn’t hear. At the end the three hold hands with the cryptic comment ‘I can feel the rings’, though Beckett specifies that none are apparent.

Duration

8 mins

Title

Rockaby

Synopsis

In ROCKABY, which was written in English in 1980, an old woman dressed in a black evening dress rocks herself in a rocking chair while listening to her own recorded voice. The story tells of the character’s seeking for another ‘a little like’ herself, in the outside world. The search ends as all the blinds are drawn and complete darkness descends.

Duration

14 mins

Production Company

Name

Blue Angel Films

Name

Tyrone Productions

Phone

020 7292 0520

Fax

020 7292 0525

Address

c/o World Cinema Ltd
27-28 Poland Street
London
W1F 8QW

Sponsor

Name

Channel Four Television

Phone

071-396 4444

Address

LONDON
SW1P 2TX

Name

Irish Film Board

Name

RTE

Distributor

Name

4 Learning

Notes

Channel 4 Learning has now closed. This used to be the educational broadcasting arm of Channel 4. The online shop sold educational DVDs and CD-ROMs for use in primary and secondary schools.

Online Retailer

Name

Beckettonfilm.com

Web

http://www.beckettonfilm.com External site opens in new window