NVAP screening of Waiting For Godot

This free screening is a part of the weekend programme: Re:Play – Celebrating 30 Years of the National Video Archive of Performance (NVAP)

+44 (0)20 7942 2000

Join us for a free screening of Waiting for Godot, written by Samuel Beckett. This production was directed by Sean Mathias and recorded live by the V&A at the Theatre Royal Haymarket, June 2009.

Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart shine as double act Vladimir and Estragon in Beckett’s absurdist play, conversing while awaiting the titular character to appear. This screening will include 1 interval, around 20 minutes long. Act 1 is 74 minutes long; Act 2 is 65 minutes long. All screenings in the programme are drop in and are on a first come, first served basis. Please be advised, screenings may contain explicit language and content. Our full list of NVAP recordings can be found on the Archives page.

Established in 1992, through an agreement with the Federation of Entertainment Unions, NVAP was the first project of its kind in the UK. The archive now holds over 450 high-quality archival multi-camera recordings of live performance in Britain and continues to record and preserve productions for the national collection. The archive, launched with Richard Eyre’s production of Richard III starring Ian McKellen (National Theatre, 1992), features a vast range of stage performances with work by notable playwrights, directors, set designers, lighting designers and actors. It is an invaluable research tool to view and learn about significant British productions and captures and preserves moments of ephemeral performance history that otherwise would be lost. When V&A East opens in 2024 all the recordings will be available for the public to view in a brand-new facility.

Header image: ‘Waiting for Godot’, Graham Brandon © Victoria and Albert Museum, London