SOURCE: "Marsha Norman," in A Search for a Postmodern Theatre: Interviews with Contemporary Playwrights, by John L. DiGaetani, Greenwood Press, 1991, pp. 245-51.

In this interview, Norman focuses on influences on her writing.

[DiGaetani]: Some of your plays remind me of some of the plays of Tennessee Williams. I suspect he had a great influence on your work.

[Norman]: I certainly respond to his portraits of women living in isolation—people not really at home in the world. I also admire the work of Lillian Hellman, especially her understanding of the brutal forces that divide families. I don't think Williams alone actually influenced my work or molded my work. I certainly didn't pattern my plays on his plays, though we do share some common concerns.

What playwrights were serious influences on your writing?

If you're talking about serious influences on my work, I think you have to go back...