Representative Plays by American Dramatists: 1856-1911: / Introduction and Bibliography

The editor assembles representative plays by American dramatists, presenting authoritative texts, introductions, and bibliographies alongside portraits and original playbills. Editorial commentary explains selection criteria, the use of unpublished manuscripts, and editorial decisions such as reproducing author-revised stage directions and omitting certain commonly available works for balance. Comparative arrangements of related texts and brief scholarly notes illuminate sources and theatrical history while the collection aims to make lesser-known and revised versions available to students and readers.