Lynn Nottage

By Oma2162593
  • Date of Birth

    Date of Birth

    She was born on November 2, 1964 in Brooklyn, New York. Her Father was a child psychologist, and her mother was a school teacher.
  • Martin Luther King Jr. was killed

    Martin Luther King Jr. was killed

    Martin Luther King Jr. evidently had a great influence on African American equality. He indirectly gave Lynn Nottage the freedom to choose the career of her choice.
  • Wrote her first play at the age of eight

    Wrote her first play at the age of eight

    The women in her family (her mother and grandmother) loved storytelling. Lynn Nottage admits that they were her inspiration to write plays.
  • She wrote "The Darker Side of Verona"

    She wrote "The Darker Side of Verona"

    She was in high school when she wrote her first full-length play. Consequently, she received admittance into an educational program, the Young Playwrights Festival in New York.
  • Graduated high school in 1982

    Graduated high school in 1982

    Lynn Nottage graduated from New York’s High School of Music and Art.
  • Starts working at Amnesty International as national press officer

    Starts working at Amnesty International as national press officer

    Working at the Amnesty International, she described her experience there as "the most important informative experience I ever had." This human rights organization clearly influenced her future plays.
  • Received a B.A. degree and M.F.A. degree By 1989

    Received a B.A. degree and M.F.A. degree By 1989

    She received a B.A degree from Brown University in 1986, and a M.F.A. degree in playwriting from Yale School of Drama in 1989.
  • Became a full time playwright in the 1990's

    Became a full time playwright in the 1990's

    Nottage said that theater is where she gets to transmit her viewpoint as an African American woman. This encouraged her to take on the career.
  • Cast in "A...My Name is Still Alice"

    Cast in "A...My Name is Still Alice"

    She was castmin a commissioned monologue for a musical entitled, A...My Name is Alice.
  • Wrote a short play called "Poof", which was performed in Actors Theater in Louisville, Kentucky

    Wrote a short play called "Poof", which was performed in Actors Theater in Louisville, Kentucky

    This play is about a woman claiming her life after the death of her abusive husband. She won the Heideman Award!
  • Crumbs from the Table of Joy is produced

    Crumbs from the Table of Joy is produced

    Steppenwolf Theatre Company in Chicago, Illinois produced the play, and it remains one of her most known plays. It is a family outreach series.
    http://www.lynnnottage.com/about.html
  • Period: to

    Takes a break from writing for almost 7 years.

    During this time she got married and had her first child.
  • Period: to

    She spent 4 years four years at Amnesty International.

    The Amnesty International is a non- government organization that focuses on human rights.
  • Lynn Nottage marries Tony Gerber

    Lynn Nottage marries Tony Gerber

    They have a daughter (Ruby), and a son (Melkamu).
  • Attack on 9/11

    Attack on 9/11

    This attack has a huge impact on all New Yorkers, including Lynn Nottage.
  • Makes the play "Fabulation, or the Re-Education of Undine"

    Makes the play "Fabulation, or the Re-Education of Undine"

    A story about a successful woman that has to return to her mediocre family.
  • Writes a play called "Intimate Apparel"

    Writes a play called "Intimate Apparel"

    This play won many awards including the New York Drama Critics Circle Award, and the Francesca Primus Prize and the Steinberg Award.
  • Writes a Play called "Ruined"

    Writes a Play called "Ruined"

    She won her first Pulitzer Prize for Drama. This story takes place in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRoC), in which a woman struggles to stay neutral with the town's politics.
  • Black Lives Matter Movement starts

    Black Lives Matter Movement starts

    This has a huge impact on future events.
  • Writes a play call "Sweat"

    Writes a play call "Sweat"

    This play won her a second Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2017.
  • George Floyd protests

    George Floyd protests

    After an police officer kills George Floyd, this brings national attentions, and in some cases, riots formed.
  • Writes a play called "MJ: The Musical.

    Writes a play called "MJ: The Musical.

    This is an upcoming play about Michael Jackson. This planed to be played on broadway, but was postponed into 2021 because of covid-19.