was unexpectedly rediscovered by American actor Lawrence Barrett in 1889, who contacted Wilde about producing it. Wilde agreed to meet him in July to discuss the play, writing he was "very glad to make any alterations in it you can suggest". Among these changes Barrett suggested was the new title Guido Ferranti, named after the lead hero rather than heroine, under which he claimed it would have greater success. He also requested that Wilde's name not be attached to the play after the failure of Vera; or, The Nihilists, although this did not deceive the New York Tribune who correctly identified the author in their review, after which it was advertised as "Oscar Wilde's Love Tragedy". The play was first produced in January 1891 in New York, with Barrett in the role of Ferranti and Minna K. Gale as the Duchess of Padua. It ran for twenty-one performances over three weeks until stopped by Barrett. Wilde sought to produce a second run of the play in London, but was refused by both Henry Irving and George Alexander. It was not produced in England until 1907, for copyright purposes; after which it was not performed there again until 2010. It was also performed twice in Germany, in 1904 and 1906. Plot synopsisThe Duchess of Padua tells the story of a young man named Guido who was left in the charge of a man he calls his uncle as a baby. Guido gets a notice to meet a man in Padua in regards to something concerning his parentage. When he arrives in Padua he is convinced by a man named Moranzone to abandon his only friend, Ascanio, in order to dedicate himself to revenging his father’s death at the hands of Simone Gesso, the Duke of Padua. In the course of the play Guido finds he has fallen in love with Beatrice, the title character, and confides his love to her, a love which she returns. By this time Guido has had a change of heart and decides not to kill the Duke of Padua, and instead intends to leave his father’s dagger at the Duke’s bedside to let the Duke know that his life could have been taken if Guido had wanted to kill him. On the way to the bedchamber, however, Guido is met by Beatrice, who has herself stabbed and killed the Duke so that she might be with