Spectrum #9: Order these plays by premiere — the solution
The Spectrum puzzle from August 23, 2026: six things on one hidden scale, earliest to latest, with every figure and where the checks were best spent.
The puzzle
Order these plays by premiere, earliest at the top and latest at the bottom. The board opened in this order:
- Waiting for Godot
- Angels in America
- Death of a Salesman
- Hamlet
- The Importance of Being Earnest
- Romeo and Juliet
Nothing was in its place; Romeo and Juliet opened 5 places from home.
The walkthrough
The ends first. Romeo and Juliet is the earliest of the six at 1595 and Angels in America the latest at 1991. Anchor those and the middle four are what is left to place.
Where the scale splits. The widest gap is between Hamlet (1601) and The Importance of Being Earnest (1895) — 294 years apart. Everything above that line belongs on the earliest side and everything below it on the latest side, so sorting the six into those two groups is most of the puzzle.
The closest call. Death of a Salesman (1949) and Waiting for Godot (1953) are only 4 years apart — the pair that is a coin flip without the figures, and the place to spend a check: a check locks whatever is already right and leaves only the wrong tiles to swap.
The answer
| # | Earliest to Latest | Figure |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Romeo and Juliet | 1595 |
| 2 | Hamlet | 1601 |
| 3 | The Importance of Being Earnest | 1895 |
| 4 | Death of a Salesman | 1949 |
| 5 | Waiting for Godot | 1953 |
| 6 | Angels in America | 1991 |
Previous: Spectrum #8 (Sat, Aug 22) · Next: Spectrum #10 (Mon, Aug 24)
About Spectrum
Spectrum is Noggin’s daily ordering puzzle: six things, one hidden scale, three checks. Tiles in the right place lock green; the figures turn over when the board is done. How to play Spectrum, or play today’s.