Anne Varty of Royal Holloway, University of London, supplies the Introduction and Notes to this collection, which shows how Oscar Wilde took London by storm with his first comedy, Lady Windermere’s Fan. Dazzling wit, subtle social criticism, sumptuous settings and the theme of a guilty secret proved a winning formula, both there and in the three plays that followed – A Woman of No Importance, An Ideal Husband, and his undisputed masterpiece, The Importance of Being Earnest. All of Wilde’s plays are gathered here, from the early tragedy Vera to the controversial Salome and the little-known fragments La Sainte Courtisane and A Florentine Tragedy, giving readers a rare opportunity to view his best-known work alongside a dramatic output that has often received scant critical attention. Audiences have never tired of Wilde’s plays, a lasting testament to his supreme wit and theatrical genius.
ISBN 13: 9781840224184
Author: Oscar Wilde
