Gilman was the first American playwright to win an Evening Standard Award. She serves on the advisory board for Chicago Dramatists. She has received the 2008 Harper Lee Award.

Gilman received the Scott McPherson Award for her play The Glory of Living. This award is a commission given by the Goodman Theatre in memory of the late playwright Scott McPherson. The Glory of Living (2001) also earned her an M. Elizabeth Osborn Award, an After Dark Award, a Jeff Citation, the George Devine Award, and the Evening Standard Award for Most Promising Playwright . The Glory of Living earned her a finalist nomination for the Pulitzer Prize.

Rebecca Gilman (born 1965 in Birmingham, Alabama) is an American playwright.

Rebecca Gilman was born in 1965 in Trussville, Alabama, a suburb of Birmingham. She currently resides in Chicago. Her plays deal with contemporary societal issues.