ABSTRACT

Contemporary Black female playwright Lynn Nottage set her historically centered drama Intimate Apparel in Lower Manhattan in 1905. Nottage’s protagonist, Esther Mills, is a Black seamstress who travels throughout New York City to deliver her extraordinary undergarments to a diverse clientele. This chapter explores the extent to which characters like Esther embrace and reject a “politics of respectability” as they navigate New York City at the turn of the century. It also considers the extent to which messages about respectability are embedded in the varied settings within the play.