A Pakistani-American has won the prestigious Pulitzer Prize for a play about a dinner party that turns into a heated argument about identity and religion.
Author Ayad Akhtar said he was “in shock” when he learned “Disgraced” won the 2013 Pulitzer Prize for drama.
The play is about a Pakistani-American lawyer who hosts a dinner party for two couples who become involved in an emotional discussion about Islamic and Judaic traditions, the Koran and Talmud, racial profiling, and other religious-political themes.
Akhtar said he wanted to write a play that had “a legitimately tragic dimension for a contemporary audience.”
Akhtar, 42, was born in New York City to Pakistani immigrants.
He grew up in Wisconsin and studied at Brown University and Columbia University’s film school.
Author Ayad Akhtar said he was “in shock” when he learned “Disgraced” won the 2013 Pulitzer Prize for drama.
The play is about a Pakistani-American lawyer who hosts a dinner party for two couples who become involved in an emotional discussion about Islamic and Judaic traditions, the Koran and Talmud, racial profiling, and other religious-political themes.
Akhtar said he wanted to write a play that had “a legitimately tragic dimension for a contemporary audience.”
Akhtar, 42, was born in New York City to Pakistani immigrants.
He grew up in Wisconsin and studied at Brown University and Columbia University’s film school.