The Antiphon, (Paperback)

Djuna Barnes's great verse drama, written about her own family, was first published in 1958 and reprinted in her Selected Writings of 1962. Since that time this important play has been out of print.

The play certainly is a strange one; even the author observes in her cautionary note to the volume that "a misreading of The Antiphon is not impossible"; and she herself described the work as a closet-drama. However, upon its first publication, the humanitarian-diplomat Dag Hammarskjold translated the play into Swedish and oversaw its production at the Royal Swedish Theatre to mostly positive reviews. Since that time there have been many attempts to restage the play. However it works on stage, it is nonetheless a central work of Barnes's, and a brilliant text to read. The Antiphon may indeed be her highest poetic achievement, alongside the great prose masterwork Nightwood.