The Collected Shorter Plays
Page 24
Come and Go. Written in English, 1965. The world premiere was in German (Kommen und Gehen) at the Schiller-Theater, Berlin, January 14, 1966. First English-language performance at the Peacock Theatre, Dublin, February 28, 1968. First American performance at the Theater for the New City, New York, October 23, 1975. First publication by Grove in Cascando and Other Short Dramatic Pieces.
Eh Joe. Written in English, spring 1965. Beckett’s first work for television and also his directorial debut. First broadcast in German (He, Joe) by Süddeutscher Rundfunk, April 13, 1966 (the author’s sixtieth birthday). The first English-language production was broadcast by BBC 2, July 4, 1966. First publication by Grove in Cascando and Other Short Dramatic Pieces.
Breath. Written in English, composition date unknown. First performed (in a version altered without Beckett’s permission) at the Eden Theater, New York, June 16, 1969, as a curtain-raiser to Jacques Levy and Kenneth Tynan’s review Oh! Calcutta! (the title is a pun on the French “O quel cul t’as,” “Oh what an ass you have”). First publication by Grove in First Love and Other Shorts, 1974.
Not I. Written in English, spring 1972. First performed at the Repertory Theater of Lincoln Center, New York, November 22, 1972, as part of a Samuel Beckett Festival. First publication by Grove in Ends and Odds.
That Time. Written in English between June 1974 and August 1975. First performed at the Royal Court Theatre, London, May 20, 1976. First American production at the Arena Stage, Kreeger Theater, Washington, D.C., December 3 of the same year. First publication by Grove in I Can’t Go On, I’ll Go On, edited by Richard Seaver, 1976. Later included in Ends and Odds.
Footfalls. Written in English, 1975. First performed with That Time at the Royal Court Theatre, London, May 20, 1976. First American performance as above. First publication by Grove in Ends and Odds.
Ghost Trio. Written in English, 1975. First televised on BBC 2, April 17, 1977. First publication by Grove in Ends and Odds.
. . . but the clouds . . . Written in English, October–November 1976. First televised on BBC 2, April 17, 1977. First publication by Grove in the expanded edition of Ends and Odds, 1981.
A Piece of Monologue. Written in English, 1977–79, for the American actor David Warrilow. It premiered at the Annex of La Mama, ETC, New York, December 14, 1979. The text appeared in The Kenyon Review that same year. First publication by Grove in Rockaby and Other Short Pieces, 1981.
Rockaby. Written in English, 1980. First performed at the Center for Theatre Research (SUNY Buffalo), April 8, 1981, as part of the university’s Beckett Festival. First publication by Grove in Rockaby and Other Short Pieces.
Ohio Impromptu. Written in English, 1981, for a symposium at Ohio State University in honor of Beckett’s seventy-fifth birthday. First performed in the Drake Union, Stadium 2 Theater, May 9, 1981. First publication by Grove in Rockaby and Other Short Pieces.
Quad. Written in English, 1981. A work for television, first broadcast in Germany (Quadrat 1 + 2) by Süddeutscher Rundfunk, October 8, 1981, directed by Beckett. First publication by Grove in Collected Shorter Plays.
Catastrophe. Written in French, 1982, in support of imprisoned playwright Václav Havel, who later became president of the Czech Republic. First performed in French at the Avignon Festival, July 12, 1982. First Ameri can production opened at the Harold Clurman Theater, New York, June 15, 1983. Beckett’s English translation appeared in The New Yorker, January 1983. First publication by Grove in Three Plays, 1984.
Nacht und Träume. Written in English, 1982 (Night and Dreams). A work for television, first broadcast in Germany by Süddeutscher Rundfunk, May 19, 1983. First publication by Grove in Collected Shorter Plays.
What Where. Written in French, 1983 (Quoi où). Beckett’s English version premiered with Catastrophe and Ohio Impromptu at the Harold Clurman Theater, New York, June 15, 1983. First publication by Grove in Three Plays.