For Colleen Jaurretche’s students, ‘Waiting for Godot’ comes to life
Jessica Wolf I UCLA
Samuel Beckett’s “Waiting for Godot” is often described as a cornerstone of modern theater.
The play, with performances at the Geffen Playhouse running through Dec. 21, invites audiences into a minimalist world where two characters, Vladimir and Estragon, wait endlessly for a mysterious figure named Godot. Instead, they encounter other seemingly random characters and each other’s philosophies.
Through its sparse dialogue, cyclic structure and profoundly existential undertones, “Waiting for Godot” challenges traditional storytelling conventions, offering a meditation on time, purpose and the human condition.
Colleen Jaurretche has been teaching UCLA students about Beckett (and other challenging Irish authors) for years. She’s also a longtime theatergoer and supporter of the arts. This year, she jumped at the chance to give her students the experience of Godot at its most intentional in the shared darkness of a theater, watching seasoned performers, including Rainn Wilson (“The Office”) and Aasif Mandvi (“The Daily Show”) in the lead roles, embody the language and spirit of this remarkable work in a high-level live production.
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Pictured above: Students attending a Geffen Playhouse production of “Waiting for Godot.”
Photo credit: Colleen Jaurretche/UCLA