Waiting for Godot

By: Samuel Beckett

Narrated by: Sean Barrett, David Burke, Terence Rigby, Nigel Anthony

There is now no doubt that not only is Waiting for Godot the outstanding play of the 20th century, but it is also Samuel Beckett's masterpiece. Yet it is both a popular text to be studied at school and an enigma. The scene is a country road. There is a solitary tree. It is evening. Two tramp-like figures, Vladimir and Estragon, exchange words. Pull off boots. Munch a root vegetable. Two other curious characters enter. And a boy. Time passes. It is all strange yet familiar. Waiting for Godot casts its spell as powerfully in this audiobook recording as it does on stage.

Download the accompanying reference guide.©Beckett Estate (P)2005 Naxos Audiobooks

Great Book on Tape

What made the experience of listening to Waiting for Godot the most enjoyable?

The actors.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Didi and Gogo

What about the narrators’s performance did you like?

Great performance. No over acting. I could really get lost in the story.

Good

This is an interesting play during a time period where some theater was "the theater of the absurd". This play falls under that category, being set in one place the whole time with minimal scenery. The audible version was good...the only thing is that every once in a while I had to look in the text to see who was speaking. Usually I could tell the difference between the two main characters, but every once in a while I needed clarification as their voices are very similar. Overall, I enjoyed the story and voice acting very much.

Maybe better as a viewed play

Maybe I am just a philistine but just to listen to this play; I haven't read it or watched it yet. But just to listen to this play didn't really spellbound me.
It was a little tedious to wait w/ the characters, well voiced as they were. This just didn't do it for me.

Waiting for God.....ot.

A lot of different interpretations of this play's meaning have been proposed but I think the most obvious one, two men wrestling over their significance before an ever-elusive God, seems the most probable.

Thoughtful without being obvious or pedantic, often funny.

Love this play

It is absurd. Don't try to make sense of it. I opened myself up to it and was stunned by how exhilarated I was by it. I've watched it, read it, and now listened to it. All were excellent. This is a must read. Great voice acting.

Great short read

I love absurdity, this short play read was amazing. it was confusing enough to keep me interested but not enough to knock me away.

yes

the most confusing and entertaining at the same time loved every second of it

A Modern Classic

I last read it almost 40 years ago. As an older man, I see the sadness in it, as well as the absurdist humor I enjoyed back then. well worth reading.

Absurdity, wit and the human condition

I have recently discovered Beckett. At first I excepted not to like his plays much, perhaps because I thought he would a bit too minimalist and avant-garde for me. I was pleasantly surprised, however, that his poetic use of words, wit and subtle existential humor suited my taste perfectly. Waiting for Godot is now one of my favorite plays, and even though some of the more visual comic effects get somewhat lost in a recording, this audio-version of the play still does it great justice. I also liked that it comes with a PDF with some interesting background of the play. Highly recommended.

The Philistines where not ignorant.

I’m just a philistine. Or maybe I’m just an ignorant philistine is what is ignorant. Just say you don’t like it or you don’t know why you don’t like it. I have an overwhelming suspicion that the phrase sounds self deprecating yet wise to some. It only makes you sound less informed. Perhaps you’re simply unfamiliar with the ethnic-political atmosphere during the time circa Herod the Great.