Ruth de Souza

Ruth Pinto de Souza (May 12, 1921 – July 28, 2019) was a Brazilian actress.

As a member of the Black Experimental Theater (Teatro Experimental do Negro, TEN), she is one of the first Black actresses in dramatic theater in Brazil and one of the first to perform at the Teatro Municipal do Rio de Janeiro. The Black Experimental Theater was created in 1944 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to combat racism and create opportunities for Black talent in theater. Along with other Afro-Brazilians women, Ruth participated in the premiere performance of TEN as a member of the chorus and later played the Native Woman, the only female character in Eugene O'Neill's play The Emperor Jones. She was awarded with Prêmio Saci.

She died in Rio de Janeiro in the neighbourhood of Copacabana in July 2019 at the age of 98.

On May 12, 2021, Google celebrated her 100th birthday with a Google Doodle.

In 2019 the Black Community Council, managed by the government of the São Paulo state, gave awards to prominent figures of the state's black community in honor of Ruth de Souza. Paula Beatriz, the first transgender woman to direct a state school, was among the laureates.