Beckett!

Haven't been to the theater in yonks. I'm very glad I broke my fast and went to see "Fragments," a program of short pieces by Samuel Beckett at the Baryshnikov Arts Center, a rather complex co-production of two directors and two theater companies with three actors in five pieces. It all managed to be spare and full and hilarious and pure and a little heartbreaking. This actor, Marcello Magni, did nothing in this piece but

 

labor through everyday activities, capping each one with a word-transcending shrug and a wheezing sigh that had the audience weeping with laughter. (In the heavier sack is his partner actor, Jos Houben.) The actress Kathryn Hunter has about the most remarkable throaty voice I've ever heard. We tend to forget that there is a sparkle to the absurdism of Beckett, and a deep humanity. See it if you can!