Sweet Mystery

Rida Johnson Young (ca. 1869-1926) was one of the most prolific female playwrights of her time, as well as a lyricist and librettist in the musical theater. She wrote more than thirty full-length plays, operettas, and musical comedies, 500 songs, and four novels, including Naughty Marietta, Lady Luxury, The Red Petticoat, and When Love is Young . Despite her extensive output, no significant study of her work has been produced. This book looks at her musical theater works with in-depth analyses of her librettos and lyrics, as well as her working relationships with other writers, performers, and producers, particularly Lee and J. J. Shubert. Using archival materials such as original typescripts, correspondence, and reviews, the book contextualizes her work in the early twentieth century professional theater and provides a window into the standard practices of writing and production of the era.

Ellen M. Peck is Associate Professor of Drama at Jacksonville State University, where she teaches theatre history, dramatic literature, stage management, and musical theatre history. She has worked as a freelance Stage Manager for several theatres and opera companies around the country, including Michigan Opera Theatre, Goodspeed Musicals, Spoleto USA, and Utah Opera.

List of Illustrations List of Boxes Acknowledgments Preface 1: The Women Who Wrote 2: An Old Story in a New Dress: The Emerging Playwright 3: Ah! Sweet Mystery of Life: Naughty Marietta 4: The Old-Fashioned Things Must Go: Musical Comedies 5: Just One of the Boys: Young as Co-Writer 6: Will You Remember?: Operetta in Wartime 7: Dream Girl: End of a Career Appendix: List of Works by Rida Johnson Young Selected Bibliography Index