The Very Last Day

The Very Last Day (Den yttersta dagen). 1952. This play bears a close relationship to Dagerman’s last novel Wedding Worries where he returns to his childhood farm and characters to explore themes of redemption. It was written for radio but has been adapted for the stage. The Very Last Day was performed at the Royal Dramatic Theater in Stockholm […]
The Game of Truth

The Game of Truth (Ingen går fri). 1948. Like The Striver, this play explores themes of self-deception and betrayal. Dagerman very likely had the idea for this play while writing the novel A Burnt Child, and this one he wanted to direct himself. In 1948, he adapted the novel (and made some changes to the story) into the […]
The Striver

The Striver (Streber). 1948. Following the success of The Man Condemned To Death, Dagerman wrote a series of plays in quick succession. In 1947-48, he spent months at a time in France with his young family, and The Striver is dictated to his wife while on route by car. He wrote to his Swedish editor: “Having a good time […]
The Man Condemned to Death
Performances Editions & Translations The Man Condemned to Death (Den dödsdömde). 1946. The master director Alf Sjöberg directed Dagerman’s first play at the Dramatic Theater (Dramaten) in Stockholm in 1947 to high acclaim. Overnight, Dagerman earned the additional reputation of a major playwright. This is a play in the spirit of Sartre, describing a claustrophobic existence—a windowless room—where everything […]
MARTY’S SHADOW

Performances Editions & Translations Marty’s Shadow (Skuggan av Mart). 1948. A young man buckles under the shadow of his older brother—a fallen war hero. Their mother worships her heroic son, while treating her other son with disdain. Dagerman drew inspiration for the characters on the Viennese-Jewish writer Etta Federn, whom he met in Paris 1947, and […]