SYNOPSIS
Endgame
Samuel Beckett’s classic play “Endgame” appears on the stage of the Duchess Theatre this Autumn with Richard Briers as the blind master Hamm. For fans of the veteran actor, famous for his roles onstage and onscreen, it will be the final chance to catch him before he retires from the stage for good.
Briers has wanted to take on the role of Hamm in “Endgame” for many years, but he felt that he was not old enough at first to play the elderly man at the centre of the story. However, time has now caught up with him, allowing him to step into the role once and for all. He will do this alongside Adrian Scarborough as Clov, his hapless servant with whom Hamm argues incessantly over the years, and Miriam Margolyes as Nell.
Theatregoers will have last caught Briers onstage in the 2002 production of “Bedroom Farces” at the Aldwych Theatre, though he has also appeared in the likes of “The Chairs” at the Duke of York’s Theatre, which marked the first time he teamed up with the theatre company Complicité, who present “Endgame” in 2009. For the screen he is best remembered for his role in the famous sitcom “The Good Life”, though his television debut came earlier in the 70s with the show “Marriage Lines”. His other credits include “Monarch of the Glen” and “Ever Decreasing Circles”.
Miriam Margolyes is the other screen star appearing in “Endgame”, who has appeared in countless films over the years, including famous movies such as “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets” (playing Professor Sprout), “Romeo & Juliet” (alongside Leonardo DiCaprio and Clare Danes) and “The Age Of Innocence”, landing her a BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actress. Her other credits include “Blackadder”, “How To Lose Friends And Alienate People” and a stage appearance as part of the cast of “Wicked” in the West End.
Scarborough has appeared in a range of productions for the National Theatre (“The Mandate”, “Time and the Conways”, “Once In A Lifetime”) as well as “Vassa” at the Almeida Theatre and “To The Green Fields Beyond” at the Donmar Warehouse, with television appearances in “Gavin & Stacey” and “The Trial of Tony Blair”.
Samuel Beckett’s “Endgame” tells of Hamm and Clov, a blind master and his servant, who both live an unsatisfactory existence arguing and living alongside Hamm’s legless parents, struggling with life after a bike accident.
“Endgame” makes its appearance at the Duchess Theatre from Thursday 24th September 2009 (previews from Friday 18th September 2009) and continues to Saturday 5th December 2009.
**Cast Update: Mark Rylance is replacing Richard Briers **
