A Conversation with Sarah Ruhl: Lessons from My Teachers

A facilitated discussion and Q&A with tony-nominated Chicago playwright Sarah Ruhl on her book, Lessons from My Teachers.

About this Event

Come join us for a reading and a facilitated discussion on LESSONS FROM MY TEACHERS with Sarah Ruhl!

This is a free event. Doors open at 7P, discussion starts at 7:30. There will be copies of the book available for sale.

ABOUT THE BOOK

In LESSONS FROM MY TEACHERS: From Preschool to the Present (Marysue Rucci Books, on-sale May 6, 2025), acclaimed author Sarah Ruhl—MacArthur genius, two-time Pulitzer finalist, and Tony-nominated playwright—reflects on the transformative wisdom of teachers, both in and beyond the classroom. 

According to Sarah Ruhl, great teachers are often those whose teaching cannot be done to scale, whose lessons depend on specificity of place, time, and relationship. Ruhl explores how great teaching is rooted in connection, presence, and relationships, often transcending traditional classrooms to include books, dreams, nature, and everyday interactions. In our digital age, where phones provide facts but not connection, she highlights the enduring power of embodied lessons:

“Teaching that is truly absorbed is composed not of words only, but also the example of the
person doing the teaching... more relation than idiom.”
 

Based on her popular class at Yale, this masterful, intimate essay collection is a testament to the singular impact of teachers across every stage of our lives. Anchored in stories both personal and universal, drawing on Sarah’s experiences with her parents and children, with schoolteachers, creative influences, and beyond, LESSONS FROM MY TEACHERS offers an uplifting perspective on our basic human need to teach and learn from each other as we navigate the surprising paths that shape our lives.

"Taken together or savored individually, these stories will invite your grad to reflect on the teachers—both formal and informal— who got them where they are and the power of human instruction to get them where they want to go."
- Oprah Daily


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Sarah Ruhl is a playwright, essayist, and poet. Her fifteen plays include In the Next Room (or the Vibrator Play), The Clean House, and Eurydice. A two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist, a Tony Award nominee, and the recipient of the MacArthur “genius” Fellowship, her plays have been produced on-and off-Broadway, around the country, internationally, and have been translated into many languages.

Her book 100 Essays I Don’t Have Time to Write was a New York Times Notable Book. She teaches at the Yale School of Drama, and lives in Brooklyn with her husband, Tony Charuvastra, who is a child psychiatrist, and their three children. You can read more about her work at SarahRuhlPlaywright.com.

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