Abstract
This essay argues that playwright Sarah Ruhl's (b.1974) 100 Essays I Don't Have Time to Write (2014) is a work of theatre theory. In her brief discursions, which sound like intimate conversations rather than a formal defense of a distinctive and innovative aesthetic, Ruhl shares with readers her non-Aristotelian approach to dramatic structure (inspired by Ovid, Chekhov, and Virginia Woolf); her aversion to subtext; her desire for color-blind playwriting and casting; her philosophy of stage directions; and her wish to give audiences experiences of I/Thou mutuality. Her essays are designed to help audiences rediscover the enchantment of theatre and of their everyday lives.