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ALS, four pages on two adjoining sheets, 4.25 x 6.25, no date but circa September 1882. Handwritten letter pitching his new play, Vera; or, The Nihilists, in full: "At the suggestion of my friend Mr. Dion Boucicault I beg to forward you a copy of a new and original drama on Russia: the note through which the passion of the play is expressed is democratic—and for that reason it is impossible to act it in London—yet the tragedy, the essence of the play, is human. There are two fine men’s parts for character acting—an old Prince Metternich sort of statesman full of epigram and unscrupulousness, and the Czar. The hero is a young enthusiast; and the heroine who gives the name to the play is conceived in all the varying moods of passion that a study of Sarah Bernhardt could suggest. I shall be very happy, if you approve of the play, to correspond on the subject of its production." In very good to fine condition, with some surface loss to edges of the last page from prior mounting.
Vera; or, The Nihilists, the first play written by Oscar Wilde and first performed in 1883, inspired by the Russian revolutionary movement. The story follows Vera, a passionate young woman who joins a group of nihilists plotting to overthrow the oppressive Russian regime. She ultimately discovers that the target of their assassination plot is the man she loves, leading to a tragic moral dilemma. The play explores themes of duty, sacrifice, and the conflict between personal love and political ideals. A fabulous autograph letter by Wilde on one of his early works.
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