The contrast: a comedy in five acts

It is the first American comedy to be performed on stage. The Contrast, which debuted in New York in 1787 to great acclaim and was performed in Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Boston between then and 1792, literally set the
scene for American dramatics, creating characters that have become iconically American, from the “Yankee” Johnathan to the vapid Charlotte and Letitia... characters we continue to see in film, TV, and fiction today. Frequently likened to British playwright Richard Sheridan’s The School for Scandal, this remains a delightful satire—and a quintessentially American one.