THE LOWER DEPTHS; A Drama in Four Acts / By MAXIM GORKY / The Moscow Art Theatre Series of Russian Plays / Edited by Oliver M. Sayler / English translation by Jenny Covan

New York: Brentanos Publishers, 1923. First American Edition, First Printing (possibly first edition in English). Decorated boards. Very Good +/Very Good. 8vo, off-white boards with orange & black border surrounding title on front cover, frontispiece brown-tinted photograph (with tissue guard) of a performance of "The Lower Depths" by the Moscow Art Theatre & B&W photo of Gorky by Sherling, Petrograd [opp. p.26], Mylar-protected cinnamon-colored black lettered dust jacket (unclipped), red topstaining to pages by publisher for dust protection, v, [vi: List of Characters] + 89 pages. Maxim Gorky, pseudonym of Aleksey Maksimovich Peshkov, (1868 - 1936), Russian short-story writer and novelist who first attracted attention with his naturalistic and Socialist Realism tales about tramps and social outcasts. He wrote many stories, novels, and plays, including famous The Lower Depths (1902). He was closely associated with Tolstoy and Chekhov and nominated several times for the Nobel Prize in literature. The Lower Depths (Russian: Na dne, literally: 'At the bottom') is the best known of Maxim Gorky's plays. It was written during the winter of 1901 and the spring of 1902. Based on poverty-striken residents of a homeless shelter, it was subtitled "Scenes from Russian Life." Produced by the Moscow Arts Theatre on December 18, 1902, Konstantin Stanislavski directed and starred. It became Gorky's first major success and a hallmark of Russian social realism. EXCEPTIONAL COPY: tight, bright, clean & in its VERY RARE dust jacket. Small 1/2" semi-circular clean cut, small waterstain, and pinhole on front panel of dj. Contemporary owner's faint inscription dated May, 1923, on free front endpaper. Small clean 3/8" edge tear p.80.