The play was first produced by Jaques Mauclair in February 1953 at the Théâtre du Quartier latin in Paris.
The first English performance was produced by Alan Simpson at the Pike Theatre in Dublin, Ireland in October 1957.
Choubert discusses an official announcement in the newspaper urging people of the big towns to cultivate detachment to conquer problems of existence and confusion of spirit.
The Detective relentlessly quizzes Choubert, eventually leading him on a journey into his own memory to reveal all he really knows about 'The Mallots'.
I am ... a Victim ... of Duty...[1] Nicolas declares he will help find Mallot, and Madeleine vehemently agrees.
In Notes and Counternotes, he describes the process of writing this piece as "tearing at his entrails and making public all his deepest doubts and fears.
[2] The character Choubert's obsession with theatre, and a particular memory where he holds his mother's hand as he walks along the Rue Blomet after the bombing, suggest that he represents Ionesco.
Additionally, the character Nicolas d'Eu, who writes poems, exclaims he is "not a writer, and proud of it!"