GODOT, SEARCHING

The events of this play happen simultaneous to those of Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot.

Act I

In an unsuspecting, wooded grove, Godot and his young ward (called simply “The Boy”) are found searching for two men who have requested their assistance. With little knowledge of the men’s identities and no knowledge of what they are in need of, Godot and the Boy wander the grove searching for their devotees by means of the only descriptors given: They are wearing bowler hats and they will be waiting for them.

Having agreed to meet the devotees at a specific tree in the grove—and having forgotten which tree they had specified—Godot and the Boy begin testing the trees to find the decided meeting spot. While testing, a large gentleman, Pozzo, appears. Attached to Pozzo by a rope around his neck is Lucky, a small gentleman, who leads Pozzo and follows his every command unquestioningly. The Boy is frightened by the strangers, and Godot mistakes Pozzo and Lucky to be his devotees. Amidst Godot and Pozzo’s bickering, Lucky develops a strange fascination with the Boy. Pozzo agrees to search for their devotees for them, allowing Godot and the Boy to rest and wait. Tired of waiting, the Boy ventures off to find their vagabonds.

Act II

The next morning, the Boy returns to Godot in the grove, having found the devotees, but is unable to recall where he met the vagabonds the night prior. Still unable to find the men, Godot insists on waiting for them to come to him. The Boy becomes frustrated with their waiting, knowing if their devotees are waiting too, then they are at a stalemate.

Pozzo returns through the grove, chasing Lucky, who has freed himself. Recapturing Lucky, Pozzo reveals the man’s lacerations underneath his clothes and shares a grim, disheartening story. Pozzo wails about the torment he experiences from being with Lucky. Frustrated with Pozzo’s treatment of Lucky, Godot and Pozzo argue until Lucky speaks uncalled for. Pozzo quickly loses control of Lucky, who proceeds to blind Pozzo. Rejecting his cognizance, Lucky returns the rope to its place around his neck, and then leads the now blind Pozzo away.

With their messenger now blind, the Boy is certain their devotees will never be found. Night draws closer, and Godot gives up, deciding ultimately that he will stay put in the grove, and that for the devotees to receive his help, they must come to him. The Boy, shaken by Lucky’s fixation and now Godot’s surrender, loses faith in their mission, and berates Godot for his lack of empathy and unwillfulness. The Boy runs away, determined to find the devotees on his own. Alone, Godot assures himself that the Boy will come back “as he always does” and rests. He sings quietly as he waits for the devotees to come to him.