KINGSTON - On Nov. 19, 1957, 11 years before   Johnny Cash   was brave enough to play   Folsom Prison , a group of worried actors prepared to face their audience. The audience, 1,400 convicts in the   San Quentin   maximum-security prison,   was already raucous and on the verge of rioting. But they made one error: the 1,400 took a minute too long, saw the stage, and could not bring themselves to riot. The legend of  " Waiting for Godot" was born.

Voted "the most significant English language play of the 20th century" by the British Royal National Theatre, "Waiting for Godot" has left countless audience members enthusiastic and exhilarated since it opened in Paris in 1953. Author Samuel Beckett calls his play a "tragicomedy" and fills it with prodding questions and more than a bit of wit. This seemingly simple play is a masterpiece that the New York Times said "changed theater."

"This play, by a   Nobel prize - winning playright, is rarely granted to a small professional company," director Ryan Hartigan said. "It's full of echoes of   Laurel and Hardy ,   Charlie Chaplin and   Buster Keaton . It's poetic, like a fight between   Shakespeare   and   James Joyce . But it's also a simple story of two men who wait for someone, with nothing but turnips and each other for company."

The Contemporary Theater Company's production will prove nothing short of spectacular. Featuring clown and the absurd, "Waiting for Godot" rouses the human spirit, delves into the depths of despair, and boldly begs the biggest questions of all. What are you waiting for?

Performances will be in the recently renovated University of Rhode Island Lippitt Hall auditorium, the same space that won The Contemporary Theater Company nominations for Motif Magazine's Best Production ("Noises Off!") and Best Supporting Actress (Megan Rose Donnelly, "Noises Off!").

"Waiting For Godot" will show Friday, July 9, Saturday, July 10, Friday, July 16, Saturday, July 17, Friday, July 23, Saturday, July 24, Thursday, July 29, Friday, July 30 and Saturday, July 31 at 7 p.m. with a matinee Sunday, July 25 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $15. Lippitt Hall is located at 5 Lippitt Road, Kingston, R.I., on the URI campus, and is handicapped accessible. Parking is available next to the building. Tickets may be purchased at the door or at www.TheContemporaryTheater.com. For more information, call (401) 228-5175.

###