Ruth Margraff

Ruth Margraff is a Professor of Writing at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) since 2007. She holds a BA from Cedarville University and an MFA from Brown University. A leading figure in avant-garde theater, her work disrupts conventional forms through martial arts operas, lyrical poetry, and cross-disciplinary performances.

Her creative works include Mirror Butterfly, Deadly She-Wolf Assassin, and Seven, performed globally at venues like the Apollo Theater and Brooklyn Academy of Music. Critical acclaim includes recognition from the Moscow Times for her 'audaciously original' style and praise from the Telegraph (India) for her transformative impact on American theater.

• Research Focus: Blending theater, music, and poetry to explore female interiority, political subtext, and working-class narratives.
• Performance History: Over 20 countries including USA, UK, Russia, India, and Egypt.

Recipient of major grants from Rockefeller Foundation, NEA, and Fulbright programs, she advocates for operatic forms beyond Eurocentrism. Current projects emphasize cubist/painterly techniques and street art influences.

• Teaching: Leads workshops on singular artistic voice and graduate creative projects at SAIC.
• Affiliations: Theater Without Borders, New Dramatist, Playwrights’ Center.