Set in Harlem in 1905, Intimate Apparel shares the story of Esther, an African-American seamstress who lives in a boarding house. She sews fine lingerie for clients from the elite of the Upper East Side to the prostitutes of the Tenderloin district. Esther has spent years working and saving her earnings to become a self-made woman, yet she is single and, at 35 years of age, feels that she may never marry — until a letter arrives from a secret admirer.

Suddenly she makes the acquaintance of a lonely Barbadian laborer who is part of a legion of men building the Panama Canal. Their love letters continue and affections build. Soon a marriage proposal is made and accepted. As she offers her hand in marriage to a man she hardly knows, she finds herself caught in a bittersweet infatuation with a betrothed Orthodox Jewish fabric merchant. Her gentle courage carries her through times of disappointment and loss as she remains true to herself to the end.

Intimate Apparel is the recipient of the American Theatre Critics and New York Drama Critics' Circle Awards for Best Play.