Signed script edition of Anthony Akerman’s anti-war play, Somewhere on the Border (1983)

This signed script edition of Anthony Akerman’s anti-war play, Somewhere on the Border, has a fascinating publishing history shaped by exile, censorship, and clandestine production.

Written in 1982/1983 while Akerman was living in exile in the Netherlands, the play offers a scathing critique of conscription and the South African Border War in Angola. Upon completion, it was promptly declared an "undesirable publication" by apartheid censors under Section 47(2) of the Publications Act and banned from distribution.

Because it could not be printed or distributed in South Africa, Akerman founded the exile theatre company Stichting THEKWINI Theatre in Amsterdam to publish the play text and stage the premiere on 11 November 1983.

The cover design imitates pop-art comic book explosion motifs alongside the SAAF (South African Air Force) insignia, while the Dutch subtitle (Tekstboek van het toneelstuk met introductie & woordenlijst & achtergrondinformatie) indicates it was tailored with background notes and a glossary for Dutch-speaking audiences and educational theatre groups interested in anti-apartheid literature.

The title page features a bold signature from Anthony Akerman. Note the printed dedication "FOR INEKE" on page 7—a reference to Dutch dramaturg and writer Ineke Holzhaus, who worked closely on the original 1983 Amsterdam production.

While the published script was banned, loop-holes in censorship laws allowed live performances under strict conditions. When staged in South Africa in the late 1980s, the productions faced intense state backlash—including military police raiding backstage to confiscate military uniforms worn as costumes, bomb threats, and physical assaults on cast members by apartheid security forces.

180mm x 260mm
Very slight wear

R1,500