The Importance of Being Earnest: And Other Plays

Description

Oscar Wilde created his final and most lasting play in 1895. Considered one of the greatest comic masterpieces of all time, 'The Importance of Being Earnest' is a farce, playing with love, religion, and the truth as it tells the tale of two men, Jack and Algernon, who bend the truth in order to add excitement to their lives.

Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) was an Irish writer, poet, and playwright. His novel,The Picture of Dorian Gray, brought him lasting recognition, and he became one of the most successful playwrights of the late Victorian era with a series of witty social satires, including his masterpiece,The Importance of Being Earnest. Terrence McNallyis the author of numerous plays, includingLove! Valour! Compassion!(winner of the Tony Award for best play),The Ritz, andFrankie and Johnny in the Claire de Lune, which was made into a feature film starring Al Pacino and Michelle Pfeiffer, and the books for the musicalsThe RinkandKiss of the Spider Woman(winner of the Tony Award for the best book of a musical). Other successes includeLips Together,Teeth ApartandThe Lisbon Traviata. McNally has received two Guggenheim Fellowships, a Rockefeller grant, and a citation from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. He also served as vice president for the Dramatists Guild, the national organization of playwrights, composers, and lyricists. He lives in New York City.