This is an extremely powerful drama and, produced with care, can be a potent theatrical experience. The fantasy that Salome dances so as to win the head of the murdered John the Baptist is Wilde's fabrication, yet there are those who now accept it as Gospel truth. The play is a work of High Decadence and was composed in the same spirit with which Wilde wrote other works around this time, "The Harlot's House" and The Picture of Dorian Gray. Aubrey Beardsley supplied grotesquely delicious illustrations, one of which ("The Woman in the Moon") shewed irreverence toward Wilde. Wilde was not pleased with the translation and it has been rumored that he "corrected" its text before publication. I am Irish, which is quite another thing." The play was then translated into English by Wilde's male lover, Lord Alfred Douglas. I will not consent to call myself a citizen of a country that shows such narrowness in artistic judgment. "If the Censor refuses Salome, I shall leave England to settle in France where I shall take out letters of naturalization. A production was planned but the play was suddenly banned from the London stage because of its depiction of Biblical characters. It has been suggested that Wilde wrote the play as a vehicle for the actress, Sarah Bernhardt, and she showed interest in starring in a London performance. Oscar Wilde wrote this play in 1891 while staying in Paris. With Sixteen Illustrations by Aubrey Beardsley Translated by Lord Alfred Douglas "Bosie"
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