The Dumb Waiter

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The Dumb Waiter
Written by Harold Pinter
Characters Ben
Gus
Date of premiere January 21, 1960
Original language English
Setting A basement room
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The Dumb Waiter is a one-act play by Harold Pinter, written in 1957. A version for television was broadcast by the BBC on July 23, 1985.

[edit] Plot summary

Two hit-men, Ben and Gus are waiting in a basement room for their assignment. Ben is the senior member of the team and is reading a newspaper when the action begins. Gus is the junior member and is tying his shoes as the play opens. Gus asks many questions of Ben as he gets ready for their job and tries to make tea, including questions about their job (Gus seems to be questioning the concept of being a hit-man). They argue over the semantics of "light the kettle" and "put the kettle on". Ben continues reading his paper most of the time, and reads excerpts of it to Gus sometimes, it seems, to change the topic of conversation. Ben gets increasingly more animated in his newspaper story-telling, and Gus's questions become more and more pointed, and at points nearly nonsensical. As the tension rises the physicality of the two players increases accordingly.

In the back of the room is a dumbwaiter, which delivers occasional food orders. This is mysterious and both characters seem to be puzzled as to why these orders keep coming. At one point they send up some snack food that Gus had brought along. As these orders come in, the tension builds to the point where they even come to blows. Ben has to explain to the people above via the dumbwaiter's "speaking tube" that there is no food. This whole sequence is rather odd because the basement is clearly not outfitted for fulfillment of the orders. Some feel that this sequence is a cue for Ben that something odd is going to happen that night and the speaking tube is going to be the means of communication.

Gus leaves the room to get a drink of water in the bathroom, and the dumbwaiter's speaking tube whistles (a sign that there is a person on the other end that wishes to communicate). Ben listens carefully -- we gather from his replies that their victim has arrived and is on his way to the room. Ben shouts for Gus, who is still out of the room. The door that the target is supposed to enter from flies open, Ben rounds on it with his gun, and Gus enters, stripped of his jacket, waistcoat, tie and gun. There is a long silence as the two stare at each other before the curtain comes down (the implication is that Gus is the person that Ben has been employed to kill).

[edit] Original Production

The original production was first produced at the Hampstead Theatre Club on January 21, 1960. The production was directed by James Roose-Evans and designed by Michael Young and featured the following cast:

  • Ben - Nicholas Selby
  • Gus - George Tovey

It then transferred to the Royal Court Theatre opening on 8 March 1960 with the same cast. The play was presented both at Hampstead and the Royal Court as a double bill together with Pinter's The Room.

[edit] Recent productions

v • d • e
The plays of Harold Pinter
Plays : Ashes to Ashes, The Basement, Betrayal, The Birthday Party, The Caretaker, Celebration, The Collection, The Dumb Waiter, The Dwarfs, Family Voices, The Homecoming, The Hothouse, A Kind of Alaska, Landscape, The Lover, Moonlight, Monologue, Mountain Language, A Night Out, Night School, No Man's Land, Old Times, One for the Road, Party Time, Remembrance of Things Past (with Di Trevis), The Room, Silence, A Slight Ache, Tea Party, Victoria Station, Voices (with James Clarke)
Sketches : Apart From That, Applicant, The Black and White, Dialogue for Three, Interview, Last to Go, The New World Order, Night, Precisely, Press Conference, Request Stop, Special Offer, That's All, That's Your Trouble, Trouble in the Works
Languages