The theater world's great rediscovery of Thornton Wilder shifts into high gear with this glorious volume of short plays--some recently discovered among his papers and published here for the first time. The Pulitzer-winning author of Our Town and The Skin of Our Teeth returned constantly to the short form, perhaps more than any other contemporary playwright. His mastery is revealed in cut gems Happy Journey to Trenton and Camden, The Long Christmas Dinner, and especially Pullman Car Hiawatha. With this volume edited by Donald Gallup and Wilder's nephew A. Tappan Wilder we add the playlets of two great unfinished cycles, The Seven Ages of Man and The Seven Deadly Sins, several of which have been completed by a scholar, respectfully based on Wilder's writings and conversations. Best among the hitherto unproduced works is Rivers Under the Earth, about the dark currents moving beneath the placid surface of a family on summer vacation. Like so many of Wilder's longer works, these short plays seem to be homely slices of Americana--but every once in a while they suddenly yield glimpses of the infinite.


From Library Journal
After a period of decline, Wilder's reputation is on an upswing that this collection of plays will fuel. This is the first volume of short plays in a uniform edition, complete and well edited by Wilder's literary executors. A third of the plays here have either been out of print for years or have never been available before, Wilder having removed several plays from publication and left others in a slightly unfinished state. The volume contains some acknowledged masterpieces, such as The Long Christmas Dinner and Pullman Car Hiawatha, but others read like studies for unwritten plays. Included are two essays on Wilder, a new one by John Guare and a reprint by John Gassner. Both focus on the duality in Wilder's work, which continues to make him something of an enigma. Wilder remains a milestone in American drama who will continue to keep us on course. Recommended for public and academic libraries and all theater collections.?Thomas E. Luddy, Salem State Coll., Mass.Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

FROM THE CRITICS

Lincoln Konkle - American Drama

Now scholars, theatre artists, and the general public have the opportunity to read this fascinating collection of one of the greatest literary and theatrical minds of the first half of the twentieth century....The Theatre Communications Group is to be commended for making these...undiscovered dramatic works by one of the century's most innovative playwrights available to readers and, hopefully, audiences in the next century.

Library Journal

After a period of decline, Wilder's reputation is on an upswing that this collection of plays will fuel. This is the first volume of short plays in a uniform edition, complete and well edited by Wilder's literary executors. A third of the plays here have either been out of print for years or have never been available before, Wilder having removed several plays from publication and left others in a slightly unfinished state. The volume contains some acknowledged masterpieces, such as The Long Christmas Dinner and Pullman Car Hiawatha, but others read like studies for unwritten plays. Included are two essays on Wilder, a new one by John Guare and a reprint by John Gassner. Both focus on the duality in Wilder's work, which continues to make him something of an enigma. Wilder remains a milestone in American drama who will continue to keep us on course. Recommended for public and academic libraries and all theater collections.Thomas E. Luddy, Salem State Coll., Mass.

Lincoln Konkle - American Drama

Now scholars, theatre artists, and the general public have the opportunity to read this fascinating collection of one of the greatest literary and theatrical minds of the first half of the twentieth century....The Theatre Communiations Group is to be commended for making these...undiscovered dramatic works...available to readers and, hopefully, audiences in the next century.

Lincoln Konkle - American Drama