A 2024 WILDER GIFT GUIDE
In celebration of Our Town on Broadway, we’ve created a curated collection of perfect pairings with Wilder’s classic for GIFTING this holiday season.
A 21st CEntury Pair
Our pairings start with two of our favorites from Concord Theatricals who underscore that even at 86, this play is very much a part of the 21st Century. We’ve matched the gorgeous, limited Our Town Broadway edition with Our Town Multilingual - which premiered at Miami New Drama in 2017 and features translated passages by Nilo Cruz and Jeff Augustin.
A PAIR OF PULITZER PRIZES
We like to think that no bookshelf would be complete without a pair of Pulitzer Prizes. Wilder won his first Pulitzer for The Bridge of San Luis Rey (1927) and his second for Our Town (1938). True American classics, these books are exceptional examples of Wilder’s deep exploration of the human condition. These gorgeous new editions from HarperCollins have forewards by Russell Banks and Donald Margulies, and feature afterwards full of fascinating details by Tappan Wilder, Wilder’s nephew.
The Origin Story
If Our Town was a superhero, then Wilder’s Classic One Acts would be the origin story. Concord’s Acting Edition is paired with the acting edition of Classic One Acts that includes Long Christmas Dinner, Queens of France, Pullman Car Hiawatha, Love and How to Cure It, Such Things Only Happen in Books & The Happy Journey to Trenton and Camden. Trace the glimmering moments that allude to Our Town inside these magical little plays with big ideas.
A NOVEL INSPIRATION
We like to call this pairing a novel inspiration! As Ann Patchett said, her novel “Tom Lake definitely started with Our Town.” So what better way to read Patchett’s New York Times best seller, than alongside this new edition of Our Town? Both books are conveniently published by HarperCollins.
JIM PARSONS’ PAIR
This Our Town combo is inspired by Jim Parsons, currently playing the Stage Manager in Our Town on Broadway who said “this page-turner of a book is simply amazing.” Parsons credits Penelope Niven’s "exquisite" biography - Thornton Wilder: A Life - as the single most valuable piece of research he did in preparing for his role in Our Town.