ruined
A Play by Lynn Nottage
Concept Statement:
Lynn Nottage’s Ruined (2009) takes place at Mama Nadi’s, a brothel in the Democratic Republic of Congo during the brutal civil
wars of the 1990s. Female identities, both physical and psychical, are constantly threatened (about to crumble, about to be “in
ruins”) by the masculine world of war and violence that surrounds them and constantly walks through their front door.
The brothel structurally at first glance is a business but physically morphs, mimicking female shape into a domestic setting and a sanctuary where the forbidden notion of black feminism and female identity can be revealed. The women of the play find themselves imprisoned in a country they call home, where they are seen as war tactic elements in Man’s quest for power rather than contributing members of society.
Ultimately, this production of Ruined seeks to remind the audience by submerging them into the environment of the story that the borders of one’s space, both in the physical world and when pertaining to one’s identity, are constantly subject to transgression, invasion, and ruin.
Design process
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The slide shows present an in-depth representation of the design process executed for the production.