“'Ruined' was a play which was somewhat of an anomaly in that I did not take a commission until it was finished because I really wanted to explore the subject matter unencumbered. Otherwise, I felt as though I'd have the voice of dramaturges and literary managers saying, 'This is great, but we'll never be able to produce it.'”

American playwright

Lynn Nottage is an American playwright known for writing about working-class lives, especially Black experience. She is the first woman to have won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama twice. She received the prize in 2009 for Ruined and again in 2017 for Sweat. Her plays often turn to labor, hardship, and the social realities facing ordinary people.