Krapp's Last Tape, Not I, That Time, A Piece of Monologue

by Samuel Beckett, Juliet Stevenson (Narrator), Peter Marinker (Narrator)

Samuel Beckett, one of the great avant-garde Irish dramatists and writers of the second half of the twentieth century, was born on 13 April 1906. His centenary was celebrated throughout 2006 with performances of his major plays, including Waiting for Godot.

Here are the two most famous plays for solo voice. Krapp’s Last Tape finds an old man, with his tape recorder, musing over the past and future. Not I is a remarkable tour de force for a single actress, as a woman emits memories and fears. Also included are two other singular short dramas for single voice, That Time read by John Moffatt and A Piece of Monologue read by Peter Marinker. It follows the highly acclaimed recordings of Beckett’s Trilogy, Molloy, Malone Dies, and The Unnamable published by Naxos AudioBooks.

Genres: Plays, Drama, Classics, Fiction, Theatre, Irish Literature, Audiobook

MP3 CD

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Novels of Samuel Barclay Beckett, Irish writer, include Murphy in 1938 and Malone Dies in 1951; a wider audience know his absurdist plays, such as Waiting for Godot in 1952 and Krapp's Last Tape in 1959, and he won the Nobel Prize of 1969 for literature.

Samuel Barclay Beckett, an avant-garde theater director and poet, lived in France for most of his adult life. He used English and French. His work offers a bleak, tragicomic outlook on human nature, often coupled with black gallows humor.

People regard most influence of Samuel Barclay Beckett of the 20th century. James Augustine Aloysius Joyce strongly influenced him, whom people consider as one modernist. People sometimes consider him as an inspiration to many later first postmodernists. He is one of the key in what Martin Esslin called the "theater of the absurd". His later career worked with increasing minimalism.

People awarded Samuel Barclay Beckett "for his writing, which—in new forms for the novel and drama—in the destitution of modern man acquires its elevation".

In 1984, people elected Samuel Barclay Bennett as Saoi of Aosdána.

Reviews

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 4 out of 5]

After listening to Waiting for Godot, I decided to listen to some of Beckett’s short monologue plays I enjoyed years ago. “Krapp's Last Tape” is about a 69 year-old man man, with his tape recorder, musing over the past and future. He both listens to memoir tapes he made when he was 39, and makes a new tape now. The tape at 39 features a strong and confident man Krapp now rejects as insufferable, while on that tape the 39 year-old Krapp disdains his 19 year-old self. The 69 year-old Krapp isn’t particularly proud of where he is now. The tape he makes is a reflection on the past year, but he has little good to say about it, except that he admits that he has found the word “spool” is a funny word. And he reports that his late book sold 17 copies. It’s a strange and funny short play, not at all linear.

“Not I” would be a challenging play for a single actress, as a woman in highly manic fashion talks about her anxieties and fears in a single monologue. Juliet Stevenson actually is the actress in this version that I listened to, and she is hilarious. I hadn’t recalled how lyrical Beckett’s writing can be. And goofy, too, sometimes. A master of language, and sure, sometimes difficult, but never boring.

[Aloha · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best audiotape and selections of short stories. If you haven’t read Beckett, this is a great intro. to him. If there’s a most favorite shelf, this would go on it.

[Chris Lilly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think Juliette Stevenson is the finest actor on the planet. This telling of 'Not I' is immense. And quite funny, if bleak makes you smile.

[Tony · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, Samuel Beckett. I listened to these performances whilst following along from 'The Complete Dramatic Works', published by Faber & Faber. I like doing that with poetry and, although these are 'dramatic works' there is a sense of poetry about them.

It starts with Krapp's Last Tape, performed by Jim Norton. This was my favourite of the four pieces and I'm going to find a performance of this to watch. There is a John Hurt one, which I think I might have to try and get my grubby little protuberances on. A man listens to tapes of his old self. It's more moving than you'd expect because so much is sub-text.

Then 'That Time: A/B/C, performed by John Moffatt. Here a man talks to himself about losing himself. It seems like the words of a man who has been broken by something. A wondering, wounded man.

Next is 'Not I: Mouth', performed by Juliet Stevenson. This time a woman, also broken in some way, lying in a field delivers a speedy monologue from a mouth that, if we are to believe what we hear, hardly ever speaks. The flow of words is rapid and repetitive. It is also surprisingly moving. Someone who survived through (almost) silence trying to explain something to us that we are never going to entirely understand. Is she dying? Who knows? Who. Knows.

Finally, Peter Marinker performs 'A Piece of a Monologue'. If 'Not I: Mouth' is rapid-fire then 'A Piece of a Monologue' is the very opposite. Yet its slowness is as much of a verbal smokescreen as the Mouth's speed. A man, in a room, where the light is barely enough for him to see. Unable to say what needs to be said? Is he trapped in memories at the end of life? Is this a reflection on mortality? It is hard to be certain, but it sounds like the musings of the loneliest person on Earth to me.

Beckett, like Pinter, is elusive. You can read what you want into his work and I don't think he'd mind much.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant but not for everyone. Extraordinarily bleak. Often darkly comic. I listened to the audiobook. About 90 minutes.

The monologues are:
- Krapp's Last Tape.
- That Time.
- Not I. Read by Juliet Stevenson. This one stands out, as especially (darkly) comical.
- A Piece of Monologue. I got very impatient with this one 0 did not enjoy it.

Remember Juliet Stevenson and look for other books she narrates.

[Jake Kilroy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started this up as the first of many to come, a dive into authors or topics my dad enjoyed in life on the anniversary of his passing. While this was a bit too jagged and disconnected to find its way deeply into me, I did appreciate the frantic pacing of characters toward the end of their life relentlessly revisiting moments that mattered to them, as if to delay death like it were an approaching madness. A good start for greatness ahead.

[Tom Walsh · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Power of Beckett’s Theatre

In Krapp’s Last Tape, we can feel the impact of his work in the way he uses pauses and silence to evoke our likely End, filled with the tension between reliving our remembered Life and denying or rejecting it.

Maybe by watching it unfold before us, we can avoid those moments. Or not.

[Nina · Rating 4 out of 5]

the absurdism is truly delightful - it's shocking how much amusement the existence of a banana can bring

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three short pieces and as expected from Beckett – decrepit old men, absurd, humors, dark, devastating, denying any human nature, taunting with divinities and profanities, and so on.

[Maya Meez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Best performance of "Not I" that I've heard. ✨👄✨

[Margret Melissa (ladybug) · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked "Krapp's Last Tape" better than "Not I". I really wished I could understand Samuel Beckett's writing. I feel confused because his writings sound more like they are from someone who needs series mental help.

[Keith · Rating 3 out of 5]

This audiobook is a collection of one-person, one-act plays by the famous modernist/avant-garde author Samuel Beckett (1906-1989). Krapp's Last Tape (1958) is the most notable work here - a deeply strange and powerful work that is usually performed in 30-60 minutes. The remaining three plays - Not I (1972), That Time (1975), and A Piece of Monologue (1979), all of which are usually performed in 10-20 minutes - are significantly less interesting, with the latter two striking me as being downright tedious.

Admittedly, I found the audio-only format too limited. Stage plays are meant to be seen rather than just heard. I tracked down filmed versions on YouTube to give each play a more thorough examination. The 2000 TV production Krapp's Last Tape starring John Hurt is excellent:

Krapp's Last Tape (1958)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bC5l...

Not I (1972)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4LDw...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=InbRI...

That Time (1975)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZ_t8...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aHHY...

A Piece of Monologue (1979)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWS1L...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zh57j...

*
Title: Krapp's Last Tape: with Not I, That Time, & A Piece of Monologue
Author(s): Samuel Beckett
Year: 2006
Genre: Fiction - Stage play collection
Date(s) read: 11/26/23 - 11/27/23
Book #225 in 2023
*

[Chloé]

A great audio book; appropriate and in keeping with Beckett's dramatic style.

The solo-voiced works create an intimate atmosphere and bring his striking pieces to life.

I particularly enjoyed Juliet Stevenson's 'Not I: Mouth'; because I like her as an actress and because she has a lovely voice that persuades the listener and encourages empathy and sympathy for the human condition.

[Matthias Vannieuwenhuyze · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beckett is one of the key writers in what is called the "Theatre of the Absurd". His work became increasingly minimalist in his later career. 'Last Tape' carries his theatrical experiment one step further, reducing the cast of characters to a single human actor, supplemented by a tape recorder playing back the same voice at a much earlier age, with references to still earlier recordings.

[Leniw · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like it when a book - or in this case a play - makes me want to read more about it. You finish reading something but still you want to learn more about it.
I have no idea how to rate this. I had a very uneasy feeling while reading it. I found myself going back and re-reading a sentence or a paragraph (just like Krapp's tapes). I did like it. It left me thinking for a while.

[Steven · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quintessentially Beckett - Krapp's Last tape is a 1 act, 1 man radio play where an old man plays back recordings of his younger self from 30 years before.

[جابر طاحون · Rating 4 out of 5]

المأساة /الملهاة /الألم/

[Daniel Wright]

The Complete Dramatic Works

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Past midnight. Never knew such silence. The earth might be uninhabited."