On the eve of her twenty-fifth birthday, Catherine, a troubled young woman, has spent years caring for her brilliant but unstable father, a famous mathematician. Now, following his death, she must deal with her own volatile emotions; the arrival of her estranged sister, Claire; and the attentions of Hal, a former student of her father’s who hopes to find valuable work in the 103 notebooks that her father left behind. Over the long weekend that follows, a burgeoning romance and the discovery of a mysterious notebook draw Catherine into the most difficult problem of all: How much of her father’s madness—or genius—will she inherit?

Winner of the 2001 Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award for Best Play. “When we think of the great American playwrights, we think of Arthur Miller and Eugene O’Neill and Lillian Hellman, in earlier generations; Wendy Wasserstein and Tony Kushner, Jon Robin Baitz and Donald Margulies today: They are always writing about big ideas and wrapping them in family squabbles that get us where we live. Welcome David Auburn to the club.” —NY Magazine. “…combines elements of mystery and surprise with old-fashioned storytelling to provide a compelling evening of theatre…[PROOF is a] smart and compassionate play of ideas.” NY Daily News. “PROOF surprises us with its aliveness…Mr. Auburn takes pleasure in knowledge…At the same time, he is unshowily fresh and humane, and he has written a lovely play.” —NY Observer. “[A] wonderfully funny…ambitiously constructed work…” —Variety.