Cascando and Other Short Dramatic Pieces

by Samuel Beckett

This collection of short dramatic works for various media includes the Cascando - a radio play, Words and music - a radio play, Eh Joe - a television play, Play - a stage play, Come and Go - dramaticule and Film - a film script.

Genres: Drama, Plays, Theatre

88 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1969

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

[Zach]

I can't tell if Samuel Beckett never published a bad work, or if his language & perspectives are such a part of my spirit that I generally have little to no critical faculty when reading him -- I devour him like air. Two radio plays, a television play, a stage play, a film script, and a dramaticule comprise this brief yet diverse collection, which simply astounds.

Cascando seems to be about a storyteller who is weary & bleary from never resting. The side of himself that remains open gently calls for the goodness of the story to continue. Words and Music explores how hyperbole can spring from desperation for meaning. The despairingly bittersweet lost loves of Eh Joe linger. Film is masterful. Beckett's attention to detail in the cinematography is incredible -- the tone he expresses is indescribable (at the moment). I look forward to watching it.

[Tijana]

Maločas sam uhvatila ovu radio-dramu na radiju i lepo se podsetila koliko je Beket u svojim slabijim trenucima gadno pretenciozan i šupalj. Ali plusić za Nikolu Simića u ozbiljnoj ulozi.

[Steven · Rating 2 out of 5]

More pretentious Beckett stream of consciousness.

[Hossein M.]

کل کتاب رو نخوندم: فقط Cascando. البته به اجرای رادیویی‌ش گوش دادم‌، همزمان به ترجمه‌ی فارسی علی باش هم نگاهی می‌انداختم. ترجمه حق مطلب رو ادا نکرده، و بعضی معادل‌گذاری‌ها سرراست نیست با توجه به کانتکست.

[Connor · Rating 5 out of 5]

content

1. Cascando (a radio play)
2. Words and Music (a radio play)
3. Eh Joe (a television play)
4. Play (a stage play)
5. Come and Go (dramaticule)
6. Film (a film script)

[W · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is one of the worst authors I've ever read. This "literature" sucks so much, I threw the book away so no one else will see it. His writing is stupid, plotless, story-less, lame, boring, and a waste of time. Btw, I read Godot and hated that too!
Other than lining a litterbox or the bottom of a bird cage, Samuel Beckett's work has no value.

[Andrew Pitkin · Rating 5 out of 5]

'Cascando' is a great play, about language, with musical elements thrown in for good measure. It's worth re-reading, as it is a highly complex work. IT has to do with the creative process, as well as writing and storytelling like many of Beckett's works.

[Fatima Jihad · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you dont love me, i shall not be loved,
If i dont love you, i shall not love.

[Anne Louise Phillips · Rating 5 out of 5]

Personally, I’ll never not love Beckett’s work.

[Timo · Rating 2 out of 5]

2,2

[ñick · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short collection of interesting little dramatic experiments. Do yourself a favor and listen to recordings of the radio dramas as you read.

[Greg · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have to admit that I truly did not like this collection of dramatic works. Beckett, clearly a master of the avant-garde, always tinkered with how to tell a story in a variety of languages and mediums. This collection includes two radio plays (“Cascando” and “Words and Music”), a television play that appeared on the BBC (“Eh Joe”), a stage play named “Play”, something called a dramaticule named “Come and Go”, and a film script named “Film.” Mainly opaque and mystifying, the meaning of Beckett’s specific instructions is lost on me. Highly symbolic, I could not follow.

See my other reviews here!

[Blain · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have to say that I am really disappointed in this collection, but for understandable reasons. Only about half of the works I was able to read all the way through, others I just skipped. There are other plays and dramatic works I have read before and enjoyed but I just don't think Beckett works so well on the page, which is sad because I have seen some performances of his work and was really drawn in by it. I would say skip the this one unless your looking to put on a production or adaptation of his work.

[Michael P. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not sure that I entirely understand CASCANDO, but I am fascinated.