Zora Neale Hurston is best remembered today for her work as a novelist, but she was also an accomplished dramatist, short story writer, and folklorist. That range of interests and styles is on full display in this collection.

In “Drenched in Light,” Hurston tells the tale of a plucky, life-affirming African American girl at odds with her irritable grandmother; “Spunk” follows the conflict between two men involved in a deadly love triangle; the prize-winning play “Color Struck” tracks the impact of colorism on a group of cakewalk competitors in the Jim Crow South; and “Sweat” portrays a woman in an abusive marriage who finds deliverance through a karmic twist of fate.

With their explorations of class, racism, family dysfunction, and female empowerment, these works beautifully represent both the energy of the Harlem Renaissance and the unique voice of one of its most influential contributors.

Revised edition: Previously published as Drenched in Light, Spunk, Color Struck, Sweat, this edition of Collected Early Works (AmazonClassics Edition) includes editorial revisions.

Full Cast for Color Struck:

Narrator: Tasha Johnson

John: Anthony S. Goolsby

Emmaline: Jeanette Illidge

Wesley: Enoch A. King

Emmaline’s Daughter, Lou Lillian: Tasha Johnson

Effie: Raven Brown

A Railway Conductor: Geoffrey D. Williams

The Doctor: Enoch A. King

The Man, Dinky: Enoch A. King

Man: Enoch A. King

Chorus: Tasha Johnson

Ada, Dinky’s Girl: Jeanette Illidge

Joe Clarke: Geoffrey D. Williams

Lizziemore: Geoffrey D. Williams

Directed by Cynthia D. Barker