Best Tragedies for College Production

1. Plays of Sophocles: Oedipus the King; Oedipus at Colonus; Antigone

   by Sophocles · 407 BCE · Tragedy

   Sophocles's Plays of Sophocles: Oedipus the King; Oedipus at Colonus; Antigone (first published -407) is a script directors return to whenever they want a vehicle that combines language of real beauty with characters actors actually fight to play.

2. Macbeth

   by William Shakespeare · 1616 · Tragedy

   A defining work of Renaissance & Elizabethan, Macbeth by William Shakespeare (first published 1616) continues to attract directors, dramaturgs, and student companies looking for material that rewards close reading and bold staging.

3. Locrine

   by William Shakespeare · 1616 · Tragedy

   A defining work of Renaissance & Elizabethan, Locrine by William Shakespeare (first published 1616) continues to attract directors, dramaturgs, and student companies looking for material that rewards close reading and bold staging.

4. A Yorkshire Tragedy

   by William Shakespeare · 1616 · Tragedy

   A defining work of Renaissance & Elizabethan, A Yorkshire Tragedy by William Shakespeare (first published 1616) continues to attract directors, dramaturgs, and student companies looking for material that rewards close reading and bold staging.

5. The Iphigenia in Tauris of Euripides

   by Euripides · 407 BCE · Tragedy

   The Iphigenia in Tauris of Euripides (first published -407) is a stage play by Euripides, a touchstone of the Greek Antiquity repertoire that has been performed continuously for generations.

6. Sejanus: His Fall

   by Ben Jonson · 1637 · Tragedy

   Sejanus: His Fall (first published 1637) is a stage play by Ben Jonson, a touchstone of the Renaissance & Elizabethan repertoire that has been performed continuously for generations.

7. The Robbers

   by Friedrich Schiller · 1805 · Tragedy

   The Robbers (first published 1805) is a stage play by Friedrich Schiller, a touchstone of the Restoration & Neoclassical repertoire that has been performed continuously for generations.

8. Fiesco; or, the Genoese Conspiracy: A Tragedy

   by Friedrich Schiller · 1805 · Tragedy

   Fiesco; or, the Genoese Conspiracy: A Tragedy (first published 1805) is a stage play by Friedrich Schiller, a touchstone of the Restoration & Neoclassical repertoire that has been performed continuously for generations.

9. Love and Intrigue: A Tragedy

   by Friedrich Schiller · 1805 · Tragedy

   A defining work of Restoration & Neoclassical, Love and Intrigue: A Tragedy by Friedrich Schiller (first published 1805) continues to attract directors, dramaturgs, and student companies looking for material that rewards close reading and bold staging.

10. Mary Stuart: A Tragedy

    by Friedrich Schiller · 1805 · Tragedy

    A defining work of Restoration & Neoclassical, Mary Stuart: A Tragedy by Friedrich Schiller (first published 1805) continues to attract directors, dramaturgs, and student companies looking for material that rewards close reading and bold staging.

11. The Maid of Orleans: A Tragedy

    by Friedrich Schiller · 1805 · Tragedy

    A defining work of Restoration & Neoclassical, The Maid of Orleans: A Tragedy by Friedrich Schiller (first published 1805) continues to attract directors, dramaturgs, and student companies looking for material that rewards close reading and bold staging.

12. The Bride of Messina, and On the Use of the Chorus in Tragedy

    by Friedrich Schiller · 1805 · Tragedy

    Friedrich Schiller's The Bride of Messina, and On the Use of the Chorus in Tragedy (first published 1805) is a script directors return to whenever they want a vehicle that combines language of real beauty with characters actors…

13. Specimens of Greek Tragedy — Aeschylus and Sophocles

    by Aeschylus · 457 BCE · Tragedy

    A defining work of Greek Antiquity, Specimens of Greek Tragedy — Aeschylus and Sophocles by Aeschylus (first published -457) continues to attract directors, dramaturgs, and student companies looking for material that rewards close reading and bold staging.

14. Psyche

    by Molière · 1673 · Tragedy

    Written by Molière (first published 1673), Psyche stands as one of the durable works of Renaissance & Elizabethan, regularly revived for its richly playable scenes and theatrically generous structure.

15. Ghosts

    by Henrik Ibsen · 1906 · Tragedy

    Ghosts (first published 1906) is a stage play by Henrik Ibsen, a touchstone of the Romantic Drama repertoire that has been performed continuously for generations.

16. The Trojan women of Euripides

    by Euripides · 407 BCE · Tragedy

    Written by Euripides (first published -407), The Trojan women of Euripides stands as one of the durable works of Greek Antiquity, regularly revived for its richly playable scenes and theatrically generous structure.

17. Alcestis

    by Euripides · 407 BCE · Tragedy

    Euripides's Alcestis (first published -407) is a script directors return to whenever they want a vehicle that combines language of real beauty with characters actors actually fight to play.

18. The Electra of Euripides Translated into English rhyming verse

    by Euripides · 407 BCE · Tragedy

    Written by Euripides (first published -407), The Electra of Euripides Translated into English rhyming verse stands as one of the durable works of Greek Antiquity, regularly revived for its richly playable scenes and theatrically generous structure.

19. The Agamemnon of Aeschylus Translated into English Rhyming Verse with Explanatory Notes

    by Aeschylus · 457 BCE · Tragedy

    Aeschylus's The Agamemnon of Aeschylus Translated into English Rhyming Verse with Explanatory Notes (first published -457) is a script directors return to whenever they want a vehicle that combines language of real beauty with characters actors actually fight…

20. The Seven Plays in English Verse

    by Sophocles · 407 BCE · Tragedy

    Written by Sophocles (first published -407), The Seven Plays in English Verse stands as one of the durable works of Greek Antiquity, regularly revived for its richly playable scenes and theatrically generous structure.

21. The Tragedies of Euripides, Volume I.

    by Euripides · 407 BCE · Tragedy

    Written by Euripides (first published -407), The Tragedies of Euripides, Volume I. stands as one of the durable works of Greek Antiquity, regularly revived for its richly playable scenes and theatrically generous structure.

22. Aeschylus' Prometheus Bound and the Seven Against Thebes

    by Aeschylus · 457 BCE · Tragedy

    Aeschylus' Prometheus Bound and the Seven Against Thebes (first published -457) is a stage play by Aeschylus, a touchstone of the Greek Antiquity repertoire that has been performed continuously for generations.

23. Oedipus King of Thebes Translated into English Rhyming Verse with Explanatory Notes

    by Sophocles · 407 BCE · Tragedy

    Sophocles's Oedipus King of Thebes Translated into English Rhyming Verse with Explanatory Notes (first published -407) is a script directors return to whenever they want a vehicle that combines language of real beauty with characters actors actually fight…

24. Chastelard, a Tragedy

    by Algernon Charles Swinburne · 1909 · Tragedy

    Written by Algernon Charles Swinburne (first published 1909), Chastelard, a Tragedy stands as one of the durable works of Romantic Drama, regularly revived for its richly playable scenes and theatrically generous structure.

25. Justice

    by John Galsworthy · 1933 · Tragedy

    Justice (first published 1933) is a stage play by John Galsworthy, a touchstone of the Realism & Naturalism repertoire that has been performed continuously for generations.

26. Socrates

    by Voltaire · 1778 · Tragedy

    A defining work of Restoration & Neoclassical, Socrates by Voltaire (first published 1778) continues to attract directors, dramaturgs, and student companies looking for material that rewards close reading and bold staging.

How this list was put together