Suzan-Lori Parks
The first African American woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, Parks writes in a distinctive 'rep and rev' style that echoes jazz improvisation. Topdog/Underdog is her masterpiece, a two-character play about history, identity, and hustling. Her work challenges theatrical convention through language and structure.
Works
- Topdog/UnderdogAfrican-American brothers trapped in con-game ritual exploring power and masculinity
- The America PlayDeconstructed history of African-American identity through Lincoln assassination reenactment
- VenusTragicomic exploration of colonized Black female body through performance and spectacle
- In the BloodRetelling of Nathaniel Hawthorne's Scarlet Letter through African-American women's stories
- Fucking AAbortionist narrative using wordplay and structure to explore female autonomy and survival
- Father Comes Home from the WarsExperimental play series following Black man through generations of American warfare