POLITICAL ENGAGEMENT IN FOUR PLAYS BY LYNN NOTTAGE
POLITICAL ENGAGEMENT IN FOUR PLAYS BY LYNN NOTTAGE

Summary/Abstract: Since the 1990s, Lynn Nottage’s drama has constantly spoken to audiences and critics alike,as her plays have depicted characters whose individual struggles question the status quo and inspire selfinterrogationfor audiences in the United States of America and elsewhere. Working with an expandeddefinition of political engagement, the analysis here examines four plays in which Nottage turns aseamstress from the turn of the twentieth century into a protagonist capable of holding the audience’sattention for the entire length of a play (Intimate Apparel), reevaluates the communist overtones of thefight for racial justice at mid-century (Crumbs from the Table of Joy), exposes lingering colonialism andcultural appropriation (Mud, River, Stone), and attacks extreme violence enacted on women as part ofthe ravages of war (Ruined). In an interview, Nottage talks about the need to challenge oneself and shedoes live up to her goal of defying labels. As the current study shows, she cannot simply be celebrated asan African American woman playwright, but as an important voice in American drama today.

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