“ For that reason, it would be well for the general reader beforehand to obtain a bird's-eye view of the history of the American theatre—a view which will comprise some consideration of the first playhouse in this country, of the conditions which confronted Hallam, Henry, and Douglass, the first actors to be at the head of what, in Williamsburg, Virginia, was known as the Virginia Comedians, and in New York and Philadelphia, as the American Company. ”

“ This, the first volume of "Representative Plays by American Dramatists," contains dramas which measure the tastes and inclinations of Colonial and Revolutionary life. In the proper understanding of their atmosphere, it is necessary to know something of the general spirit of the theatre of the period; to measure the conditions, customs, and social peculiarities of the provincial actors and audiences. ”

“ The plays included in this series have very largely been selected because of their distinct American flavour. The majority of the dramas deal directly with American subjects. But it seemed unwise and unrepresentative to frame one's policy of selection too rigidly on that score. Had such a method been adhered to, many of the plays written for Edwin Forrest would have to be omitted from consideration. It would have been difficult, because of this stricture, to include representative examples of dramas by the Philadelphia and Knickerbocker schools of playwrights. ”

“ Mercy Warren, was himself a serious dramatist, who took his work seriously, and whose dramas may be obtained at any large reference library. The Red-Coats, as actors, amused their Tory public with such plays as "Tamerlane," "The Busybody," and "Zara;" and when they invaded the Southwark Theatre, around 1777, Major André, the presiding genius of the English soldier-actors, turned to good account his ability as a scene-painter, and painted a backdrop which was preserved in Philadelphia until 1821, when it was destroyed by fire. ”

“ The early American theatre was nothing more than the theatre of England transplanted to a more provincial atmosphere. We have a record of dramatic performances being given at Williams [Pg 8] and Mary College before the Royal Governor, in 1702, and, in 1736, the students were presenting Addison's "Cato." In 1714, in Massachusetts, Chief Justice Samuel Sewall, famed for his witchcraft injunctions, protested against acting in Boston, and warned the people in this fashion: "Let not Christian Boston goe beyond Heathen Rome in the practice of Shameful Vanities." ”

“ And so, in the second and third volumes of this series, the reader will find plays which, while not wonderful in their literary value, are, nevertheless, very distinctive, as reflecting the theatrical tastes of the time, and the very crude, but none the less sincere, technical effort of the playwrights. All the dramas included in the second and third volumes have had their stage productions, and are thus representative of characteristics which mark the abilities of certain actors, whose claims to originality are found in the special types they created. ”

“ Mowatt's "Fashion," according to our modern methods of acting. These plays may often seem verbose and lacking in continuous development and interest. This would lead us to believe that possibly the early actor had means at his disposal of overcoming these defects by a method of dramatic technique unknown to the present player. In reading these dramas, one must be able to bear in mind the differences which exist between the theatre of to-day and the theatre of yesterday, between the tradition of the actor of to-day and of the actor of yesterday. ”

“ For example, plays and dialogues written at colleges at a period ante-dating 1800, and likewise ante-dating the Revolution, are a distinctive development in themselves, and would form an interesting contrast with the work being done at the colleges since the beginning of the present so-called dramatic renaissance (1917) . These dialogues, in their proper place, will be dealt with in the introductions to a few of the plays. ”

“ Stedman-Hutchin [Pg 17] son, Library of American Literature; Winsor; "Memoirs of the Hon. Royall Tyler: Late Chief Justice of Vermont. Compiled from his Papers by his son, Thomas Pickman Tyler, 1873" (Unpublished) . According to information (1917) , this manuscript, incomplete, is being brought to a close by Helen Tyler Brown, great-granddaughter of the Judge. There is likewise a life of Mary Tyler, unpublished, written by herself when quite an old woman. ”

“ Herne's plays have heretofore been published, and two of his most distinctive dramas in original manuscript, "Margaret Fleming" and "Griffith Davenport," have been totally destroyed by fire. But representatives of Mr. Herne's family have declined, at the present time, to allow his plays to be published. This is to be regretted, inasmuch as nearly all of the most prominent American playwrights are represented, either in the publication of isolated plays or in definitive editions. I should have liked to end this collection with the inclusion of Mr. ”

“ The personalities of the Hallams, of Douglass and Hodgkinson, are picturesque and worth while tracing in all aspects of their Thespian careers in the Colonies. So, too, the persons of Thomas Wignell, the Comedian, and of Mrs. ”

“ Matthews, J. B. A Book About the Theatre. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. 1916. [Pg 13]
Moses, Montrose J. The American Dramatist. Boston: Little, Brown & Co. 1917.
Moses, Montrose J. Famous Actor-Families in America. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell & Co. 1906.
Pence, James Harry. (Compiler.) The Magazine and the Drama. An Index. New York: The Dunlap Society. 1896.
Phelps, H. P. Players of a Century. A Record of the Albany Stage. Albany, 1880.
Rees, J. The Dramatic Authors of America. Philadelphia, 1845.
Roden, Robert F. Later American Plays. 1831-1900. New York: The Dunlap Society. ”