A period drama about poets and critics confronting art’s changing cultural power.
Set in Frenchtown, New Jersey in the summer of 1939, the play follows poet Delmore Schwartz, writer Gertrude Buckman, and poet and critic James Agee during a shared weekend on the eve of World War II. Against the backdrop of a rapidly changing cultural landscape, their conversations and relationships reveal tensions between literature, poetry, and the growing influence of film in American life.
Inspired by real historical figures, the play examines a transitional moment in artistic culture, tracing how cinema began to eclipse poetry and literature as a dominant force in shaping public imagination and understanding. The story draws on the lives of Delmore Schwartz, Gertrude Buckman, and James Agee.
