Anyone braving sweltering temperatures to visit London's Hampstead Heath earlier this week may well have spotted a group of notable individuals gathered around a striking tree sculpture, hanging on the words of Samuel Beckett. The group, led by a stellar bagpipe player, were celebrating the 80th birthday of artist Sean Scully.
Actors Adrian Dunbar (Line of Duty) and Russell Tovey (The History Boys) read excerpts from Beckett’s landmark 1953 play Waiting for Godot as part of the birthday revelries. Dunbar led the way, explaining the links between Beckett’s text and the sculptor Alberto Giacometti, who created a plaster tree for a 1961 revival production of Godot at the Paris Odeon—though the spindly prop was reportedly destroyed in 1968 when students occupied the building.
This latest incarnation of Godot’s Tree was made recently by Scully as a set prop for Dunbar, a long time friend. The work was installed temporarily on the Heath at the mythical site of Boudicca’s grave.“We are killing two birds with one stone,” said Dunbar. “We wish Sean happy birthday and christen [his] tree.”
Dunbar and Tovey exquisitely recited the roles of Vladimir and Estragon against the backdrop of branches and Scully’s majestic piece. “Adrian and I came up here to practice at the weekend,” Tovey says, adding that he has taken a “Pinter-esque” approach to the text (in other words, add pauses). The birthday celebrations rolled on with a dinner for Scully held at his London gallery, Thaddaeus Ropac.