Never before published and written in three weeks in the autumn of 1967 after two visits to the Greek detention island of Leros, The Protagonists is Brenda Chamberlain's response--both heartbreakingly lyrical and disturbingly visceral--to the right-wing coup d'état of April 1967. A dangerous, dissident text that draws on the conventions of absurdist theater, the play can be viewed as the dark culmination of Chamberlain's profound, career-long exploration of individuality, belonging, incarceration, imaginative freedom and the social role of the artist. It is also a startlingly candid articulation of her own emotional and psychological "internment" at the time. This edition includes a wealth of additional material, including Chamberlain's own sketches, photographs of the play in performance, an interview with the lead actor, a contemporary review of the play's performance, and an in-depth essay contextualizing Chamberlain's literary techniques and influences.