The Rose Tattoo
New York: New Directions, 1951. 1st Edition. Octavo, publisher's rose cloth, spine stamped in black, original illustrated dust jacket.
First edition of Tennessee William's Tony Award-winning play The Rose Tattoo, published a month after its Broadway premiere. The play follows Serafina delle Rose, a Sicilian-immigrant seamstress living in Louisiana, deep in mourning for her husband; three years after his death, she has become a recluse and deranged with grief and expects her 15-year-old daughter Rosa to follow. When Serafina later learns that her husband had been unfaithful, she begins to question her faith and complete devotion. Williams dedicated the play to his Sicilian-American love, Frank Merlo, incarnating him as Alvaro, who brings Serafina back to life with his passionate, clownish masculinity. The play opened in New York on February 3, 1951, and ran for 306 performances, winning five Tony Awards, including Best Play, and was adapted to the screen in 1955, earning three Oscars, including Best Actress for Anna Magnani. Dust jacket design by Alvin Lustig. First state binding with rose cloth. Small bookplate to front endpaper. Faint offsetting from cellotape to endpapers; unclipped dust jacket with some chipping to spine-ends, cellotape residue to edges of panels, and light edgewear. About very good. Item #13277
$150.00