African American Musical "Porgy" by Dorothy and DuBose Heyward, First Theatrical Edition, 1927

DuBose Dorothy Heyward

First Edition

Heyward, DuBose and Dorothy. Porgy: A Play in Four Acts, 1927, presenting the first theatrical adaptation of DuBose Heyward’s novel centered on Black life in Charleston, South Carolina, with particular relevance to representations of African American communities, language, and urban experience in early twentieth-century American literature and theater. The play develops the character of Porgy, a disabled street beggar living in the tenement district known as Catfish Row, based on a real Charleston resident, and incorporates dialogue reflecting Gullah speech, a Creole language shaped by African linguistic traditions and spoken among coastal Black communities. The work contributed to broader cultural engagement with African American subjects during the interwar period and influenced subsequent interpretations of Southern Black life in literature and performance. Contemporary reception included recognition of Heyward’s attention to language and character, with Langston Hughes noting his portrayal of the people of Catfish Row.

Heyward, DuBose and Dorothy. Porgy: A Play in Four Acts. New York: Doubleday, Page and Company, 1927. First edition of the first theatrical version. Issued with original orange wrappers and bearing the Theatre Guild Library insignia on the front cover. The text comprises 203 pages and reflects the adaptation of the novel into a staged dramatic format intended for theatrical production.

Single volume, 203 pages, measuring approximately 5 x 7.5 inches, in original wrappers. Spine with some sunning and splitting along the joints; front hinge cracked but holding; textblock clean. Overall very good condition. A significant early dramatic adaptation depicting African American life and language in the American South.

Item #18376

Price: $650.00