Le voyageur sans bagage
Encyclopedia
Le voyageur sans bagage (The Traveller Without Luggage) is a 1937 play
in five acts by Jean Anouilh
. Incidental music
was written by Darius Milhaud
.
suffers from amnesia
and has spent the last 18 years in a hospital trying to regain his memories. Although he is claimed as a son by various families, a rich Duchess believes the true family Gaston belongs to is the Renauds. Gaston travels to the Renaud's estate alongside his lawyer Huspar. A docile character, Gaston discovers his former identity of Jacques Renaud: a cruel and violent young man who used to kill animals for sport. He learns that immediately prior to the war he pushed his best friend, Marcel, down a flight of stairs, breaking his back, shortly after witnessing him kissing the maid Juliette, with whom Jacques had been intimate. He has difficulty reconciling his current personality with that of his past. His brother's wife, Valentine, (with whom he had an affair during adolescence), proves that he must be Jacques Renaud by telling him about a scar he has. Jacques had a tiny scar on his shoulder from where Valentine attacked him with a hat pin in a fit of jealousy. Gaston then sees this scar in the mirror, but does not tell Valentine about it. Soon thereafter, numerous families arrive at the Renaud estate searching for their lost loved one from the war. Gaston spots a young boy. This boy, who is the only surviving member of the Madensale's, a family who died tragically in a boating accident when he was an infant, is searching for his long lost nephew who happens to be much older than himself. Gaston tells the young boy about his scar on his shoulder and fabricates a story about the scar belonging to the boy's long lost nephew. Gaston leaves the Renaud's to become a member of this boy's family, later writing a letter to Jacques' brother Georges stating that their Jacques is dead and they need not search for him any longer.
Play (theatre)
A play is a form of literature written by a playwright, usually consisting of scripted dialogue between characters, intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. There are rare dramatists, notably George Bernard Shaw, who have had little preference whether their plays were performed...
in five acts by Jean Anouilh
Jean Anouilh
Jean Marie Lucien Pierre Anouilh was a French dramatist whose career spanned five decades. Though his work ranged from high drama to absurdist farce, Anouilh is best known for his 1943 play Antigone, an adaptation of Sophocles' Classical drama, that was seen as an attack on Marshal Pétain's...
. Incidental music
Incidental music
Incidental music is music in a play, television program, radio program, video game, film or some other form not primarily musical. The term is less frequently applied to film music, with such music being referred to instead as the "film score" or "soundtrack"....
was written by Darius Milhaud
Darius Milhaud
Darius Milhaud was a French composer and teacher. He was a member of Les Six—also known as The Group of Six—and one of the most prolific composers of the 20th century. His compositions are influenced by jazz and make use of polytonality...
.
Plot
Gaston, a veteran of World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
suffers from amnesia
Amnesia
Amnesia is a condition in which one's memory is lost. The causes of amnesia have traditionally been divided into categories. Memory appears to be stored in several parts of the limbic system of the brain, and any condition that interferes with the function of this system can cause amnesia...
and has spent the last 18 years in a hospital trying to regain his memories. Although he is claimed as a son by various families, a rich Duchess believes the true family Gaston belongs to is the Renauds. Gaston travels to the Renaud's estate alongside his lawyer Huspar. A docile character, Gaston discovers his former identity of Jacques Renaud: a cruel and violent young man who used to kill animals for sport. He learns that immediately prior to the war he pushed his best friend, Marcel, down a flight of stairs, breaking his back, shortly after witnessing him kissing the maid Juliette, with whom Jacques had been intimate. He has difficulty reconciling his current personality with that of his past. His brother's wife, Valentine, (with whom he had an affair during adolescence), proves that he must be Jacques Renaud by telling him about a scar he has. Jacques had a tiny scar on his shoulder from where Valentine attacked him with a hat pin in a fit of jealousy. Gaston then sees this scar in the mirror, but does not tell Valentine about it. Soon thereafter, numerous families arrive at the Renaud estate searching for their lost loved one from the war. Gaston spots a young boy. This boy, who is the only surviving member of the Madensale's, a family who died tragically in a boating accident when he was an infant, is searching for his long lost nephew who happens to be much older than himself. Gaston tells the young boy about his scar on his shoulder and fabricates a story about the scar belonging to the boy's long lost nephew. Gaston leaves the Renaud's to become a member of this boy's family, later writing a letter to Jacques' brother Georges stating that their Jacques is dead and they need not search for him any longer.