Fifty Contemporary One-Act Plays

Here is a time capsule of theatrical ambition. This collection gathers fifty one-act plays from the early twentieth century, a period when American theater was exploding with new voices and the Atlantic felt narrower than ever. Pierre Loving curated these works to showcase both the rising American dramatists and the international voices deserves English-language readers' attention. You'll find comedies, dramas, and experiments in between: a kaleidoscope of styles united by a shared hunger to reinvent what the stage could do. The plays capture a world before television, when the one-act form was ideal for experimental storytelling, social commentary, and the kind of brevity that leaves lasting impressions. Whether you're reading for historical context, theatrical technique, or the simple pleasure of discovering forgotten gems, this anthology offers a front-row seat to the moment modern drama came into its own.