Search Results: Drama from Mare Booksellers

New York: Dick and Fitzgerald, 1906. Wraps. Good. Pale yellow wraps. 6 pp., plus ads. A play or long skit written for Vaudeville performances, featuring a young man and woman and a variety of short gags/jokes. GOOD condition. Minor to moderate soiling, minor spotting and staining to the wrappers. Uneven toning. Faint diagonal crease to the text block.

London: Joseph Williams, Limited, 1911. Wraps. Good. Printed wraps. 10 pp., plus a page of ads in the rear. A short one act play revolving around a young girl about to attend her first dance, where her divorced mother attends to see her after a 15 year absence. GOOD condition. Wrappers browned along the extremities, with some creasing, minor chipping and tearing. Ownership signature on the upper front cover and title page. Several corrections to the text in pencil.

New York: Samuel French, 1928. Wraps. Very Good. Blue printed wraps. Small booklet. 14 pp., plus one page of ads. A separate printing of this work that first appeared in Collier's Weekly, musing on rehearsals for theater performances. VERY GOOD condition. Minor wrinkling and edgewear to the covers.

Evergreen/Grove Press, 1960. First Edition. Wraps. Good. (An Evergreen Original). 1960. Stated first Evergreen printing. This book consists of plays by John O'Hara, Try!Try!; John Ashbery, The Heroes; James Merrill, The Bait; and Lionel Abel, Absalom. A few photos of the plays are interspersed throughout the text. Try! Try! By O'Hara is the story of a young man returning to civilian life after the Korean War. Described as one of the first "beat" dramas. Ashbery's play reworks the myth of Theseus. Merrill's play concerns itself with Jamesian characters and Abel's play retells the famous biblical story in existential terms. In GOOD condition. Moderate soiling to the covers including one noticeable centimeter sized spot at the lower front corner. Uneven sunning/browning around the edges of the front and back cover. Spine sunned and faded. Light scuffing to the extremities. The inner text is clean and well bound with perhaps a bit of fading to the pages.

Philadelphia: Brown Brothers, 1910. Cloth. Good. Second edition, stated. Reddish brown cloth. 161 pp., plus ads. Translated from the German by Francis J. Ziegler. English language edition of this early German modernist drama, being rather controversial due to its subject matter. The play explores teenage sexuality, puberty, masturbation, homoeroticism, sadomasochism, rape, sexual abuse and suicide, while criticizing society's treatment of sexuality in teenagers. Due to its perceived controversial nature, the play was often banned and censored, and received very little performances. It has been recently translated by Jonathan Franzen, and a Broadway musical adaption in 2006 earned eight Tony Awards, including Best Musical. Frank Wedekind was a German playwright and actor, whose work influenced German expressionism and who often explored sexuality in his work. GOOD condition. Faint spotting and staining to the covers, mostly along the front cover fore edge. Minor soiling, fading and scuffing.… Read More

London: Thomas Hailes Lacy. Pamphlet. Good. no date, perhaps mid 1800s. Pamphlet. 24 pp. A short drama revolving around the captain of a merchant ship. GOOD condition, lacking any wrappers that may have been issued. Minor foxing and staining to the front and last page. Some staining along the spine.

Northhampton, MA: The Apiary Press, 1961. First Edition. Quarter Leather. Very Good/No Jacket. First edition, #36 of 50 copies, bound by hand by Anna B. Held. Red leather spine with decorative paper covered boards. Quarto. 30 pages, including endpapers. Signed by the illustrator. Stated 25th book printed at the Apiary press. Illustrations by Anna B. Held. A fine press printing of this avant-garde Belgian playwright's work. Printed at the Apiary Press at Smith College, under the tutelage of Leonard Baskin, a noted American sculptor, print maker and printer. VERY GOOD condition. Minor fading and scuffing along the leather spine. Very light toning to the covers. Light soiling/finger smudging to the endpapers.

New York: Living Theatre, presumed Publisher. Unbound. Good. no date, circa 1963. Single sheet, 8 ½ by 11 inches. A flier advertising the play, "The Brig," by Kenneth Brown and first staged at the Living Theatre in 1963. The play, an antiauthoritarian work based on Brown's experiences incarcerated while in the Marines, won an Obie Award. The Living Theatre is a long running theater company known for its efforts to make theater less commercial and more community based. GOOD condition. Several chips and tears along the extremities, with the tip of the lower left corner torn off. Minor toning and wrinkling.

London: Printed for R. Dodsley, 1753. Pamphlet. Good. Pamphlet, disbound from a larger work, with remains of leather along the spine. No original wrappers present, if issued. 86 pp. An English take on the ancient Greek tragedy. Originally written in 1728, it wasn't performed until 1753. Written by Edward Young, perhaps best known for his long work of blank verse, Night Thoughts. GOOD condition. Moderate toning, spotting, staining and soiling to the title page. Minor toning and light scattered foxing in the interior. Remains of leather along the spine.

Tokyo/Palo Alto, CA: Kodansha International, Publisher, 1973. Wraps. Good. Wraps. 88 pp. With a section of black and white photos by Kaneko Hiroshi. A history of Bunraku, a traditional form of theater in Japan, relying on the use of puppets. As a serious art form, dramas and literary masterpieces were written to be performed with elaborate costumes and music complementing the play. This work looks at its origins, evolution, key figures in Bunraku, and its role in Japanese culture. GOOD condition. Moderate fading and scuffing to the covers, with some soiling. Rear cover toned and stained. 1 ½ inch split along the lower front hinge. Owner's name present. Minor toning to the text.

Paris: Chez le Veuve de Claude Thiboust, 1686. Full Leather. Good. Full leather. 6 by 3 ¾ inches. (6), 315, (2) pp. Text in French and Latin. A collection of comedic plays by African-Roman playwright Terentius, or as more commonly known, Terence. He was originally enslaved and brought to Rome, being freed after impressing his enslaver with his abilities. Much of his work was inspired by, or adapted from, early Greek plays, and was particularly popular for its use of clear and simple language. Armorial bookplate of Sir John William Lubbock present, although no indication as to which one. GOOD condition. Heavy chipping, flaking and tearing to the leather along the spine and hinges, with areas of loss to the lower spine. Moderate uneven darkening and fading to the covers, with minor soiling. Extremities bumped and scuffed. Aforementioned bookplate present. A previous owner has glued fold out pieces of paper to the endpages, all bearing ink lists of names. Minor toning and light scattered foxing throughout.

New York: Samuel French. Original Wraps. Good. No date, circa 1868. Yellow wraps. 20 pages. Includes brief instructions on the costumes, as well as cast lists for London and New York. A short comedic farce. GOOD condition. General fading, minor to moderate soiling (more so the rear cover) and creasing to the wraps. Moderate scuffing and wear to the rear wrap. Light scuffing and creasing along the extremities. Scattered foxing and soiling to the interior, with a small stain at the upper right corner of the first page. A few pencil tick marks next to some passages. Previous owner's signature present on the title page.

Boston: Oliver Ditson and Co, 1862. Wraps. Good. Printed wraps. 27 pp. A libretto by Benjamin Edward Woolf for the Doctor of Alcantara, a comic opera that originated as a collaboration between composer Julius Eichberg and Woolf. States performed for the first time at the Boston Museum, April 7th, 1862. GOOD condition. Some staining to the lower rear cover. Minor soiling and toning. Some wrinkling and minor creasing.

London: John Knight and Henry Lacey, 1825. Half Leather. Good/No Jacket. Greenish morocco half leather with marbled boards and endpapers. Li, Xiii, 248; x, 288; ix, 317 pp. LACKING the illustration of the Old Drury Lane Theatre, a portrait of Shakespeare and an original letter of Sheridan in volume 3 (although this may be bound in at the end of volume 2). All other illustrations present as called for, with the frontis illustrations in volumes 1 and 2 bound in a bit further on. A collection of short anecdotes reflecting on the history or theater, commenting on notable actors, playwrights, plays, performances, etc., from ancient to the then present. With commentary on Shakespeare, brief mention of American theater, Harry Rowe, John Palmer, a riot at the Haymarket Theater, Chinese play, customs of the French theater, Charlotte Cibber, etc. GOOD condition, lacking the aforementioned plates. Leather rather scuffed along the hinges, with minor scuffing along the extremities and to the covers. Minor… Read More

Japan: Shichigatsudo Press, 1986. Wraps. Good. Red printed wraps. 30 pp. Text in English and Japanese. With a fold out sheet advertising a staging of the piece. An "American" play using the form of the Japanese No. By Janine Beichman, an author and scholar specializing in Japanese poetry. GOOD condition. Moderate uneven fading and offsetting to the covers. Minor wrinkling and along the extremities and corners.

New York: William Morrow and Company, 1971. First Edition. Cloth. Very Good/Good. First edition, with no statement of later printings. Beige cloth in unclipped dust jacket. 166 pp. A play by Ed Bullins, a key figure in the Black Arts Movement and Minister of Culture in the Black Panther Party. GOOD jacket on a VERY GOOD book. Some toning and soiling to the jacket, mostly to the rear cover. Two small tears near the upper left front corner. Minor scuffing and edgewear. Light fading and edgewear to the book. Owner's name on the first endpaper.

No Place: No Publisher. Pamphlet. Good. No publisher, place or date. Disbound pamphlet, apparently disbound from a larger work. 16 pp. Illustrated header. Double columned text. An historical drama written by William Shirley a colonial administrator and governor of the Massachusetts colony, who also served a role in the French and Indian War and the Siege of Louisburg. GOOD condition. Lacking any wraps that were issued. Some chipping and roughness along the spine edge. Minor browning.

Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1987. Cloth. Very Good/Very Good. Charcoal cloth in unclipped jacket. 103 pp. A previously unpublished play by Ezra Pound, being a modern rendition of Sophocles' work. VERY GOOD condition. Minor fading and rubbing to the jacket and book.

New York: Macmillan, 1941. Cloth. Good/Good. Blue cloth in unclipped jacket. 182 pages. With a few illustrations, as well as a frontis photo of the author by Doris Ulmann, the noted portrait photographer perhaps best known for her photography in Roll, Jordan Roll. A play dramatizing Emma by Jane Austen. GOOD jacket and book. Heavy darkening to the jacket along the extremities. Some soiling, most noticeable to the upper front cover. Uneven fading. Extremities worn, with several chips and small tears along the edges. Spine browned. Uneven moderate fading and browning along the book extremities. Minor soiling and edgewear. Interior clean and solid.

Kobiki-Cho, Tokyo: Kabukiza Theatre, presumed Publisher. Wraps. Fair. no date, perhaps 1903. Printed wraps. 9 pages. Page 8 blank, with Japanese characters on the last page. Otherwise all text in English. A summary of scenes and acts, with a little printed dialogue of several plays performed at the Kabuki-za Theatre in Tokyo in 1903. This includes Kasuga-No-Tsubone, Suo-Otoshi and Onna-Date Komagata Osen. These were apparently performed by Ichikawa Danjuro IX, a noted Kabuki actor of the Meiji Period, and considered a key factor in the continued popularity of Kabuki theater at that time (see Wikipedia). May, 1903 was Danjuro's last performance (he died in September of that year). The Kabuki-za Theatre was built in 1889 and rebuilt in 1921, continuing the Kabuki theater to the present. It was founded by Fukuchi Gen'ichiro, who wrote many of the plays that featured Danjuro (Wikipedia). FAIR condition. Moderate chipping, tearing and loss along the extremities, including what appears to be some nibbling… Read More