The Skin of Our Teeth

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The Skin of Our Teeth is a Pulitzer Prize–winning 1942 play by Thornton Wilder that blends absurdist comedy and allegory to depict the enduring resilience of a family—and humanity—through apocalyptic catastrophes.


Statements (49)
Predicate Object
instanceOf play
theatrical work
author Thornton Wilder
awardReceived Pulitzer Prize for Drama
awardYear 1943
countryOfOrigin United States
depicts Ice Age catastrophe
global war
great flood
dramaticForm three-act play
firstPerformanceYear 1942
genre absurdist drama
allegory
comedy
hasAdaptation radio adaptations
television adaptations
hasPart Act I
Act II
Act III
influencedBy World War II context
biblical narratives
mythology
literaryMovement modernist theatre
mainCharacter George Antrobus
Gladys Antrobus
Henry Antrobus
Maggie Antrobus
Sabina
notableFor blend of absurdist comedy and allegory
notableProduction original Broadway production at the Plymouth Theatre
originalBroadwayDirector Elia Kazan
originalBroadwayLeadActor Florence Eldridge
Fredric March
originalBroadwayOpeningDate 1942-11-18
originalBroadwayProducer Michael Myerberg
originalLanguage English
partOf American dramatic canon
publicationYear 1942
setting Atlantic City, New Jersey
Excelsior, New Jersey NERFINISHED
theme apocalypse
cyclical nature of history
family dynamics
human resilience
survival through catastrophe
war and destruction
usesDevice breaking the fourth wall
metatheatre
writer Thornton Wilder

Referenced by (2)
Subject (surface form when different) Predicate
Theatre Guild
Thornton Wilder
notableWork

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