Lane A. Glenn is a Ph.D. specializing in theatre history and literature. In this essay, he discusses the different cultural climates offin de siecle Vienna, when Arthur Schnitzler's Reigen was first produced, and the Europe and America of the late-twentieth century, when playwright David Hare updated Schnitzler's work as The Blue Room.

Dr. Arthur Schnitzler began writing Reigen, a "round dance" of sexual escapades among a variety of characters in turn-of-the-century Vienna, during the winter of 1896-97. He initially considered his collection of "dialogues," as he called them, too scandalous to ever be staged, and preferred to simply have them printed, at his own expense, and distributed to friends for their enjoyment. Reportedly, when his fiancee asked to see a copy, he even refused her, saying Reigen was not appropriate reading for a young lady.

It wasn't until 1920 that Schnitzler allowed a publicly staged performance of...