Following his outstanding performance in the Gate productions of Harold Pinter’s No Man’s Land and Samuel Beckett’s Eh Joe, Michael Gambon returns in a new production of Beckett’s classic play, Krapp’s Last Tape, which will see him make his third successive stage appearance at the Gate.

 

Krapp’s Last Tape received its world premiere in 1958 at the Royal Court Theatre, London, starring Irish actor Patrick Magee. Originally entitled Magee Monologue, it was inspired by Beckett's experience of listening to him read extracts from Molloy and From an Abandoned Work on radio. It was first produced at the Gate Theatre in 1991, starring David Kelly, and toured to Seville, Chicago, Melbourne and New York. In 1999, the Gate also presented Krapp’s Last Tape in a critically acclaimed production starring John Hurt as part of the Gate’s Beckett Festival in the West End, and subsequently in 2006, to celebrate the Beckett centenary, in Dublin and in London.

 

The Gate Theatre has a long-standing association with Samuel Beckett and his work, having toured productions all over the world. In 1991, the Gate became the first theatre to present a full retrospective of Samuel Beckett’s 19 stage plays which made a triumphant mark in Beckett history. In 1996, the Gate brought all 19 plays to the Lincoln Center, New York and later to the Barbican Centre, London, for BITE:’99. For the Beckett Centenary, the Gate presented a selection of ten Beckett productions simultaneously at the Gate and the Barbican as part of BITE ’06. The Gate also toured a Beckett season to the 2007 Sydney Festival, 2008 Lincoln Center Festival and enjoyed a sold out National Tour of Waiting for Godot.

 

Michael Gambon has worked extensively in theatre, film and television. His extensive award-winning stage career began in 1962 for Edwards/MacLiammóir Dublin Gate Theatre Productions and the following year he joined Laurence Olivier’s National Theatre Company. Theatre credits include the Gate Theatre Dublin productions of Pinter’s No Man’s Land and Beckett’s Eh Joe, both of which transferred to the West End, as well as a staged reading of Celebration at the Albery Theatre as part of the Gate’s celebration of Harold Pinter’s 75^th birthday; The Caretaker at the Comedy Theatre, Life of Galileo at the National Theatre, A View From The Bridge at the National Theatre, Cottesloe, A Number for the Royal Court and Endgame for the Albery Theatre. Gambon’s extensive film and television credits include The Singing Detective, The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover, Longitude, Mary Reilly, Sleepy Hollow, Gosford Park, Sylvia, Angels in America, Layer Cake, The Life Aquatic, The Good Shepherd, Amazing Grace, and four Harry Potter films in which he plays the Headmaster of Hogwarts, Professor Albus Dumbledore. In 1992 Gambon was awarded a CBE and in 1998 he received a knighthood for his contribution to the arts.  

 

Michael Colgan is a film and television producer and also Director of the Gate Theatre, Dublin. In his 27 years at the Gate, he has produced many award-winning plays and festivals including four Pinter Festivals and six Beckett Festivals.  Many of these productions have been seen throughout the world from Beijing to New York, Sydney to Toronto and London to Melbourne. Last year he produced a season of works by Brian Friel to mark the playwright’s 80th birthday. The plays opened at the Sydney Festival and later toured to the Edinburgh International Festival before returning to Dublin for a brief run at the Gate. For the Gate Theatre, he has previously directed Brian’s Friel’s Faith Healer starring Owen Roe and a stage adaptation of Beckett’s novella First Love starring Ralph Fiennes at the Sydney Festival 2007 and at Lincoln Center, New York. In 2006, Colgan was awarded the Irish Theatre Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Arts, and in 2007, he received the degree of Doctor in Laws from Trinity College, Dublin. IN 2007, he was honoured with the title Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Government and, most recently, received an OBE by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II for services to cultural relations between the UK and Ireland

 

Krapp’s Last Tapeopens at the Gate Theatre for a limited run on Thursday 29 April, with a preview on Wednesday 28 April. Performances will run Monday to Saturday at 8pm with Saturday Matinees each week at 3pm.