Oscar Wilde and the Art of Lying

D.D. Desjardins received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of New Mexico in 1984. He practiced engineering for ten years, thereafter free-lancing as translator of text. It was also at this time (1993) he wrote his first play, an historical drama, Der Anschluss, researched at Klementinum Library in Prague. This was followed by Young Man of Promise, written at Stanford University (1994) and Lazarro Spallanzani (based on the biography of Paul DeKruif) written at the University of Cracow, in 1996. He then pursued a Master’s in Playwriting at Queen Margaret University College in Edinburgh, graduating “with distinction” in 2001. Two scripts, A Few Greek Poets and Speculations on the Nature of Heaven and Hell, begun as undergraduate one-acts, were later expanded into full-length plays, the former being successfully produced in Dayton, Ohio in 2004. Several shorter plays, Athos’ Wife (based on Alexandre Dumas’ The Three Musketeers) and a dance pantomime, Love in Bloom, were produced by the North Carolina Stage Company. His first French play, Monsieur le Président (2012) enjoyed a successful run at the French Cultural Centre in Bujumbura, Burundi, marking the beginning of his collaboration with Lampyre Theatre Company. His publications also include Philosophy of the Sublime as Theory and Experience (2019).