1960's The Arts | The American Dream

Play script

By: Edward Albee

Date: 1961

Source: Albee, Edward. The American Dream and The Zoo

Story: Two Plays by Edward Albee. New York: Signet, 1963, 57–61.

About the Author: By the time Edward Albee (1928–) established himself as a playwright in the 1960s, he had been writing for several years. The Zoo Story, published in 1959, was his first successful one-act play and was one of many that addressed disillusionment and family life. Albee's awards include the 1967 Pulitzer Prize for A Delicate Balance and a 1996 Kennedy Center Honor. He is best known for the play Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

Introduction

The American Dream, a one-act play, premiered January 24, 1961, at York Playhouse in New York City. Five characters—Mommy, Daddy, Grandma, Mrs. Barker, and "Young Man"—convey the satiric comedy of...