THE PLAY
The action of Dannie Abse's play takes place in enemy occupied country, a situation that breeds violence. Some people fear violence, some are fascinated by it, some are repelled by it, some glory in it, while some when faced with its reality find a strangely ambivalent attitude combining all these reactions simultaneously. The effects of violence on the individual is the theme of this powerful drama. The central incidents are based upon a story of Balzac, but the particular haunting quality which makes this play so memorable is Dannie Abse's own.
Dannie Abse (1923–2014) was a Welsh poet, novelist, playwright and physician. Born into a Jewish family in Cardiff, he practised medicine for more than thirty years while establishing himself as one of Britain’s most admired contemporary poets.