Lynn Nottage
Photos: Tavon Olds-Sample Takes Final Bow as 'Middle Michael' in MJ (Jun 1, 2026)
JOHN PROCTOR IS THE VILLAIN, AMERICAN IDIOT and More Set for Goodman Theatre 26/27 Season (May 20, 2026)
Whitney White Replaces Liesl Tommy as IMITATION OF LIFE Director; Production Dates Pushed Back (May 15, 2026)
BIO
Lynn Nottage is a Pulitzer Prize winning playwright and a screenwriter. Her plays have been produced widely in the United States and throughout the world.
Plays include Sweat (Pulitzer Prize for Drama, Obie Award, Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, Evening Standard Award; Tony, Drama Desk award nominations); Ruined (Pulitzer Prize for Drama, New York Drama Critics Circle, DD, Outer Critics Circle, Lortel, Obie, and Audelco awards for Best Play); Floyd’s (Guthrie); Mlima’s Tale (The Public); By the Way, Meet Vera Stark (Lilly Award, DD nom); Fabulation, or The Re-Education of Undine (Obie Award; DD, Lortel award noms); Crumbs from the Table of Joy; Las Meninas; Mud, River, Stone; Por’knockers; and POOF!; as well as the book for the musical adaption of The Secret Life of Bees (Atlantic).
TV: She’s Gotta Have It (writer/producer). PEN/Laura Pels Master Dramatist Award, Doris Duke Artist Award, American Academy of Arts and Letters Award, MacArthur “Genius Grant” Fellowship, a Guggenheim Grant, Lucille Lortel Fellowship, Visiting Research Fellowship at Princeton. Associate professor at Columbia. Member of the Dramatists Guild.
Photos
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NEW YORK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 06: (L-R) Lisa Arrindell, Quincy Tyler Bernstine, Stacey Sargent, Tonya Pinkins and Kenita Miller attend the Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center Hosts The 22nd Monte Cristo Award Honoring Lynn Nottage at Capitale on November 06, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Ilya S. Savenok/Getty Images for Eugene O'Neill Theater)
From: Photos: Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center Honors Lynn Nottage at the 22nd Monte Cristo Awards
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 06: Krystal Joy Brown attends the Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center Hosts The 22nd Monte Cristo Award Honoring Lynn Nottage at Capitale on November 06, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Ilya S. Savenok/Getty Images for Eugene O'Neill Theater)
From: Photos: Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center Honors Lynn Nottage at the 22nd Monte Cristo Awards
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 06: Nezzy De Jesus and Terence Archie attends the Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center Hosts The 22nd Monte Cristo Award Honoring Lynn Nottage at Capitale on November 06, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Ilya S. Savenok/Getty Images for Eugene O'Neill Theater)
From: Photos: Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center Honors Lynn Nottage at the 22nd Monte Cristo Awards
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 06: Lynn Nottage and Michael Douglas attend the Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center Hosts The 22nd Monte Cristo Award Honoring Lynn Nottage at Capitale on November 06, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Ilya S. Savenok/Getty Images for Eugene O'Neill Theater)
From: Photos: Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center Honors Lynn Nottage at the 22nd Monte Cristo Awards
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 06: Lynn Nottage and Michael Douglas attend the Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center Hosts The 22nd Monte Cristo Award Honoring Lynn Nottage at Capitale on November 06, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Ilya S. Savenok/Getty Images for Eugene O'Neill Theater)
From: Photos: Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center Honors Lynn Nottage at the 22nd Monte Cristo Awards
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 06: (L-R) Guest, Stacey Sargent, Lynn Nottage, Tonya Pinkins and Lisa Arrindell attend the Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center Hosts The 22nd Monte Cristo Award Honoring Lynn Nottage at Capitale on November 06, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Bennett Raglin/Getty Images for Eugene O'Neill Theater )
From: Photos: Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center Honors Lynn Nottage at the 22nd Monte Cristo Awards
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 06: A view of atmosphere as Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center Hosts The 22nd Monte Cristo Award Honoring Lynn Nottage at Capitale on November 06, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Bennett Raglin/Getty Images for Eugene O'Neill Theater)
From: Photos: Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center Honors Lynn Nottage at the 22nd Monte Cristo Awards
Productions
Writing
Awards and Nominations
Lynn Nottage, Intimate Apparel
Lynn Nottage, Intimate Apparel
Lynn Nottage, MJ the Musical
Lynn Nottage, The Secret Life of Bees
winner
Lynn Nottage, The Secret Life of Bees
Lynn Nottage, Sweat
winner
Lynn Nottage, Sweat
winner
Lynn Nottage, Lynn Nottage
winner
Lynn Nottage, Sweat
Lynn Nottage, Sweat
Lynn NottageIntimate Apparel
Lynn Nottage, By the Way, Meet Vera Stark
winner
Lynn Nottage, Ruined
winner
Lynn Nottage, Ruined
winner
Lynn Nottage , Ruined
winner
Lynn Nottage, Ruined
winner
Lynn Nottage, Fabulation
winner
Lynn Nottage, Intimate Apparel
winner
Lynn Nottage, Intimate Apparel
Videos
Video: Kara Young Stars in First Trailer for IS GOD IS Film Adaptation
by Josh Sharpe - 2026-02-20 10:28:09
Video: Kara Young Celebrates Tony Win for Best Featured Actress in a Play
by Joey Mervis - 2025-06-08 22:27:37
Video: The Cast of MJ THE MUSICAL Performs 'ABC,' 'I Want You Back' & More in A MOTOWN CHRISTMAS
by Josh Sharpe - 2024-12-12 11:28:42
Video: MJs Around the World Unite to Celebrate Michael Jackson's Birthday
by Nicole Rosky - 2024-08-29 10:34:30
Video: MJ – Das Michael Jackson Musical: Benét Monteiro in der Titelrolle!
by Joshua Wright - 2024-08-06 10:10:37
Video: Kara Young Responds to Tony Win for Best Featured Actress in a Play
by Joey Mervis - 2024-06-17 08:37:44
Video: MJ's Devin Bowles Sings National Anthem At Colorado Rockies Game
by Joshua Wright - 2024-04-15 10:00:56
Video: MJ Launches Sweepstakes in Celebration of 2 Million Tickets Sold
by Chloe Rabinowitz - 2024-04-08 12:58:54
Video: Mahkai Dominique Talks CRUMBS FROM THE TABLE OF JOY at Everyman Theatre
by Blair Ingenthron - 2024-02-25 15:22:40
Video: Roman Banks Talks MJ at the Orpheum on KPIX CBS News Bay Area
by Blair Ingenthron - 2024-02-03 14:09:39
Video: Go Inside The Meet & Greets For Asolo Rep's BORN WITH TEETH & INTIMATE APPAREL
by Joshua Wright - 2024-01-30 11:43:39
Video: Deidre Staples & Mahkai Dominique on CRUMBS FROM THE TABLE OF JOY at Everyman Theatre
by Joshua Wright - 2024-01-25 12:28:52
VIDEO: Director Reginald L. Douglas On CRUMBS FROM THE TABLE OF JOY at Everyman Theatre
by Joshua Wright - 2024-01-17 09:51:54
Video: Watch the MJ THE MUSICAL Cast Perform 'Santa Claus Is Coming to Town' on TODAY
by Michael Major - 2023-12-26 11:16:41
Video: The Cast of MJ THE MUSICAL Performs 'Santa Claus is Coming to Town'
by Stephi Wild - 2023-12-14 09:19:17
News
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Jun 1, 2026
Original Broadway cast member Tavon Olds-Sample took his final bow as 'Middle Michael' in MJ. See photos from the night! Olds-Sample made his Broadway debut in MJ in 2021.
by Chloe Rabinowitz - May 20, 2026
Goodman Theatre Artistic Director Susan V. Booth and Executive Director John Collins have revealed the 2026/2027 Season line-up, beginning this fall. With 12 productions—five world or Chicago premieres, a reinvestigated classic and more.
by Chloe Rabinowitz - May 15, 2026
The new musical Imitation of Life has revealed new production dates and a new creative team member for its world premiere engagement at The Griffin Theater at The Shed.
by Stephi Wild - May 14, 2026
Theatre Passe Muraille's THROUGH THE EYES OF GOD led the 2026 Toronto Theatre Critics' Awards with three wins, including best production of a play, while Crow's Theatre productions collectively took home eight prizes.
by A.A. Cristi - May 13, 2026
Broadway's MJ is exploring the softer side of the King of Pop's catalogue in a new video featuring cast members performing an acoustic version of the classic tune, 'Human Nature'. Go inside the studio with the cast as they put a new spin on an MJ classic.
by Lucía Serrano - May 7, 2026
I was 14 when Michael Jackson passed away, and I mourned him like I’ve never mourned a public figure since then. I was never really a fangirl of anyone, but Michael Jackson existed in a league of his own. That is exactly what the Tony Award-winning MJ The Musical, with a book by Lynn Nottage, captures with precision, spectacle, and surprising tenderness.
by Natalie O'Donoghue - May 7, 2026
In a small Rust Belt town in Pennsylvania, friendships are forged through sweat and laughter. For decades, Tracey and Cynthia have worked side by side, bound by shared history and hard-earned pride. But when whispers of layoffs grow louder, opportunity turns into betrayal. A community built on solidarity begins to splinter, as bitter resentments and unspoken racial divides rise to the surface.
by Chloe Rabinowitz - May 4, 2026
Delaware Theatre Company has revealed its 2026/27 Season. The season will launch on September 16, 2026, featuring five plays, including The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee and more.
by Stephi Wild - Apr 30, 2026
Performance dates and ticket information has been announced for IMITATION OF LIFE, a new musical with a book by Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage, music and lyrics by Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony Award winner John Legend.
by Stephi Wild - Apr 29, 2026
Black Women on Broadway announced its 2026 honorees, recognizing the contributions of Black women to the Broadway community. Learn more about the honorees here!
by Stephi Wild - Apr 29, 2026
The Public Theater has announced the lineup for The Public’s Fall 2026 and Winter 2027 season. The season lineup will include The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, plus works from James Ijames, Ryan J. Haddad, Richard Nelson, Taylor Mac, and more.
by Lucía Serrano - Apr 29, 2026
Created by Tony Award-winning Director/Choreographer Christopher Wheeldon and two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage, the multiple Tony Award-winning musical MJ The Musical is coming to the San Diego Civic Theatre from May 5–10, bringing Michael Jackson’s singular moves and signature sound to the stage.
by A.A. Cristi - Apr 27, 2026
National Black Theatre announced its spring/summer programming, including a co-commission with Oxford University featuring Tony Award-winner Sarah Jones and a theatrical reimagining of Amy Sherald's American Sublime, directed by Zhailon Levingston.
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Apr 16, 2026
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts will present Summer for the City, inviting New Yorkers and visitors to a season centered on movement, community, and international artistry.
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Apr 16, 2026
Cherry Lane Alternative is relaunching with The Tongues reading series, featuring a staged reading of The Demand of Avarice, written by Matthew McLachlan, directed by David Zayas Jr., and starring Kyra Sedgwick and more.
by Stephi Wild - Apr 14, 2026
Brandon Lee Harris, who originated the role of ‘Michael' in the First National Tour of the Tony Award-winning musical MJ, will return to Broadway and take over the role of ‘Michael' from original Broadway cast member Tavon Olds-Sample
by Courtney Symes - Apr 12, 2026
It’s time to “Jam” at Broadway Sacramento, with the four-time Tony Award winning MJ the Musical. With a book by Pulitzer Prize-winner Lynn Nottage and choreography by Christopher Wheeldon, this National tour is a high-energy visual spectacle that checks all the boxes for pure, unadulterated entertainment.
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Apr 9, 2026
The National Tour of MJ will have a return St. Louis engagement at The Fabulous Fox May 19-24. Show times for MJ at The Fabulous Fox are Tuesday through Saturday evening at 7:30 p.m., Saturday afternoon at 2:00 p.m. and Sunday afternoon at 1:00 p.m.
by Stephi Wild - Apr 8, 2026
Liza Jessie Peterson, recently cast in the final season of Paramount+ series THE CHI, will present her play SISTAH-GURLS AND THE SQUIRREL at Crossroads Theatre Company's 37th annual Genesis Festival in New Brunswick, NJ on April 11.
by Jennifer Ashley Tepper - Apr 19, 2026
Musicals and plays based on movies? Many. Based on books? Also plentiful. Based on true stories? Of course. But musicals and plays based on or inspired by magazine articles? These are a rare breed. One recently opened on Broadway at the August Wilson Theatre.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Lynn Nottage has written 13 shows including MJ (Bookwriter), Crumbs from the Table of Joy (Playwright), Por'Knockers (Playwright), Mud, River, Stone (Playwright), Intimate Apparel (Playwright), Fabulation, or the Re-Education of Undine (Playwright), The Antigone Project (Playwright), Ruined (Lyricist), By the Way, Meet Vera Stark (Playwright), In Your Arms (Story), Sweat (Playwright), Intimate Apparel (Libretto), Imitation of Life (Writer).
Outstanding Book of a Musical (Drama Desk Awards) for Intimate Apparel, Outstanding Book of a Musical (Outer Critics Circle Awards) for Intimate Apparel, Best Book of a Musical (Tony Awards) for MJ the Musical, Outstanding Book of a Musical (Drama Desk Awards) for The Secret Life of Bees, Outstanding Book of a Musical (Outer Critics Circle Awards) for The Secret Life of Bees, Outstanding Play (Drama Desk Awards) for Sweat, Playwrighting (Obie Awards) for Sweat, Playwrights' Sidewalk Inductee (The Lortels) for Lynn Nottage, The Pulitzer Prize for Drama (The Pulitzer Prize) for Sweat, Best Play (Tony Awards) for Sweat, Best Play (Evening Standard Awards) for Intimate Apparel, Outstanding Play (Drama Desk Awards) for By the Way, Meet Vera Stark , Outstanding Play (Drama Desk Awards) for Ruined, Best Play (New York Drama Critics Circle Awards) for Ruined, Best Play (New York Drama Critics Circle Awards) for Ruined, The Pulitzer Prize for Drama (The Pulitzer Prize) for Ruined, Playwriting (Obie Awards) for Fabulation, Best Play (New York Drama Critics Circle Awards) for Intimate Apparel and John Gassner Playwriting Award (Outer Critics Circle Awards) for Intimate Apparel .
Lynn Nottage has received several prestigious awards throughout her career. They include the Outstanding Book of a Musical at the Outer Critics Circle Awards for The Secret Life of Bees, as well as the Playwrighting award at the Obie Awards for Sweat. She was inducted into the Playwrights' Sidewalk at The Lortels. Nottage also won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for Sweat and Ruined. Her play Ruined garnered the Outstanding Play award at the Drama Desk Awards and the Best Play award at the New York Drama Critics Circle Awards, multiple times. Additionally, she received the Playwriting award at the Obie Awards for Fabulation and the Best Play award at the New York Drama Critics Circle Awards for Intimate Apparel. Lastly, she was honored with the John Gassner Playwriting Award at the Outer Critics Circle Awards for Intimate Apparel.
Videos
