The last script written by Jean-Paul Sartre, exploring themes of war and responsibility.

For the third installment of our "Try∙ Angle –The Viewpoints of Three Directors–" series, director Kamimura Satoshi of Bungaku-za theatre company will take on Jean-Paul Sartre's "Les Séquestrés d'Altona" (The Condemned of Altona), in a new translation by Iwakiri Shoichiro.

"Les Séquestrés d'Altona" was published in 1959 and premiered in Paris that same year. The play is Sartre's last, and is commonly cited as one of his best three, alongside Huis-clos (No Exit) and Le Diable et le Bon Dieu (The Devil and the Good Lord). It was written during the days of the Algerian War of Independence (a.k.a. the Algerian War), as a way of calling attention to the torture being committed against Algerians by French troops and their supporters; the setting, however, has been switched to World War II. The play relates the story of Franz, a young man who went off to fight in the war and came back with deep emotional scars. Upon returning, he retreated inside his house and has not left for 13 years. Through Franz, Sartre explores not only the themes of war and responsibility, he also paints a portrait of the sense of despair and hopelessness felt by those who find themselves trapped with no way out.