Fresh off the critical success of “Breaking the Surface” in May, veteran director Damkerng “Big” Thitapiyasak, a master of play adaptation (Rashomon, La Ronde, Push Up 1-2-3, to name a few), and his New Theatre Society troupe are now collaborating with Crescent Moon Theatre. This time, it’s one of the best known plays of the last century, Samuel Beckett’s “Waiting for Godot.” This prime example of theatre of the absurd often triggers such responses from the audience as “What the @#$%”. Not anymore.

The new title is “Waiting for G.D.”, and the Thai title will sound much more fun “Koi Kor Dor”—ask your Thai friends why. Actually, fun is one major concept behind this experimental production.

“I’d like to see a lighter version of ‘Godot’,” says Big. “I’ve seen many productions and they’re all gloomy; but I remember the first time I read the play, it’s very funny, even though I couldn’t make much sense out of it.”

“Actually, even the playwright himself said that his play was symbiotic, and his audience shouldn’t put much thought into it.”

He calls this version “an unseen mise-en-scene”, and subtitles it “the mission impossible.”

Apart from substantially cutting down the script, rearranging some parts so that they’re less confusing, and relocating it to rural Thailand, the characters’ names are changed into names that Thai people are familiar with—Gogo (short for Estragon) becomes Tago, Didi (Vladimir) is now Sali (sand pear), Posso Linchee (lychee), and Lucky Cherry. Big says with a grin, “Freudian psychological interpretation plays a role here.”

While the four characters in the original play are all male, this version’s are the opposite. Big explains, and, no, it has nothing to do with the Thai title, “To tell you the truth, I don’t know why [I made this change]. Maybe the audience have already seen many productions with all male actors, so why not?”

Damkerng has picked four of the best stage actresses in this country—Crescent Moon’s artistic director Sineenadh Keitprapai, B-Floor’s Jarunun Phantachat (last seen in “Room No. 0), Sumontha Suanpolrat (“Man of La Mancha”), and Farida Jirapan (one of the comic highlights in “Push Up”), and hence we’re quite sure this will be another good evening out at the theatre.

>> “Waiting for G.D.” opens today (July 22) and runs everyday (except Monday) until Sunday, August 3 at Crescent Moon Space, Pridi Banomyong Institute (BTS: Thong Lor), one show daily at 7.30pm.

>> Tickets are Bt 350 (Bt 250 for students), bookable by calling 086 787 7155.

>> www.CrescentMoonTheatre.com