[5] She has compared her time talking to former steelworkers in Reading with the occasion when she stayed in the town of Mansfield in the English Midlands and interviewed workers during the 1984 miners' strike. CHRIS: Cmon. Chris gets involved in the fight. The play portrays a meeting between a parole officer and two ex-convicts, and three women who were childhood . The play alternates between the same characters in 2000 and 2008, a plot structure that allows the audience to see how these choice pan out over timeand the shame and guilt that characters feel in response to their actions, even eight years later. Sweat by Lynn Nottage Directed by Matt J. Bannister TICKETS: www.ssstage.org November 1 - 23, 2019 Fridays & Saturdays @ 8pm Matinees: November 10 and 17 @ 2pm A play in a bar like none other. The play portrays a meeting between a parole officer and two ex-convicts, and three women who were childhood friends and had worked in the same factory. They get tax breaks or something. You can order a custom paper by our expert writers. As the play switches back to 2000, we hope to learn what happened between them. [1] The action takes place in a fictional bar[6] in Reading, Pennsylvania.[7]. Personally, this part of the play resonated with my feelings towards the racial violence we experience today. Management is for them. Based on interviews with residents of small-town Pennsylvania, Lynn Nottage's play vividly describes the betrayal and resentments of striking female factory workers in an era of industrial decline We're friends! Both Cynthia and her loved ones feel hurt and misunderstood, further demonstrating the tendency for inequality in status to break apart relationships. Although Cynthia breaks the rules by warning Tracey, Jessie, Chris, and Jason that a lockout is imminent, they begin to see her as a betrayer rather than a trusted member of their inner circle due to her position of authority over them. The 2008 sequences also shine a spotlight on Chris and Jason's mysterious crime without revealing that incident until the end, leaving the audience waiting for the other shoe to drop instead of being able to focus on the complex relationships Nottage builds and the reflection of America in civil strife. Sweat was a meaningful production as there are many important themes to take away from the story. 'Sweat' explores themes of race, gender, ethnicity, class, and labor relations in a deeply human way November 1, 2021 The cast of "Sweat," pictured from left: Elizabeth Crishock, Ariana Pea, and Joseph Steele (front row); Misheck Mzumara, Ashlynn Brooks, Luke Dangel, and Mark Logan (leaning on the bar); Genaro Mejia and Alex Cruz (behind the bar). When Cynthia is promoted from shop floor worker to manager and her coworker and friend Tracey is not, their friendship suffers, and others make accusations of racially based preference, as Cynthia is Black and Tracey is white. The two men have not seen each other since the events that led to their incarceration. It is bookended by scenes showing two young ex-cons confronting their parole officer, but the bulk of the action is set eight years earlier, in the year 2000, in a downtown bar where women workers from the local factory hang out. Who is the antagonist in the play Sweat by Lynn Nottage? Find related themes, quotes, symbols, characters, and more. [9] The Wall Street Journal review suggested the play "explained" Trump's win. In 2008, Chris and Jason both find themselves back at the bar to find some peace. Their fathers and grandfathers, spouses, and everyone else in this small Pennsylvania town have grown up working on the plant floor, including Tracey and Cynthia's respective sons, Jason and Chris. Unfortunately, that kinetic energy is all on one level, high, so the audience feels distanced from the characters. L ynn Nottage's Sweat is a play set in 2000 and 2008 that explores the tension in a group of friends in the midst of layoffs at a factory in Reading, Pennsylvania. It highlights serious problems in society such as racism, economic strain, drug abuse, and toxic relationships. Mainly the women in her family who were teachers, activists, and artists. Nottage has said that she was particularly influenced by a New York Times article reporting on the city specifically, and by the Occupy Wall Street movement more generally. If there are two dates, the date of publication and appearance Oscar, the busboy at a bar, is viewed as a traitor when he begins working at the factory the friends and their union are protesting. 2023 eNotes.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Tracy is a middle aged white woman. The play takes place in a small town in Pennsylvania where there is one main line of work everyone goes into. In one of the poorest cities in. The acting is superlative. Start your 48-hour free trial to get access to more than 30,000 additional guides and more than 350,000 Homework Help questions answered by our experts. [8][12] The production began previews on Broadway at Studio 54 on March 4, 2017, before opening on March 26. What statements does this play Sweatmake about racism and racial tension in the United States? Peterson unleashes her actors like pinballs, bouncing off each other, intensifying until they explode in the climax. Though her two friends clash throughout the play, Pietz appears to harbor most of the blows. But when characters begin to distance themselves from the status quo and pursue different opportunities, these relationships gradually disintegrate as those left behind feel resentful of their friends new paths. A lot of wrong things can be said under the influence, and I believe most of their arguments all began with the abuse of alcohol. eNotes.com, Inc. Carroll, in his few scenes as the parole officer, conveys the father figure both boys need to rehabilitate. Nov. 912 at 7:30 p.m. The characters in Sweat have spent decades of their lives thanklessly laboring in Reading Pennsylvania's local steel and textile mills amid poor working conditions, disrespectful management, and union disputes. The trade union goes on strike, and company management locks out the workers. Call me selfish, I dont care, call me whatever you need to call me, but remember, one of us has to be left standing to fight. If there are three dates, the first date is the date of the original TRACEY: Stillyou werent born here, Berks. JASON: [] But seriously, man, why didnt you tell me? This review of Lynn Nottage's "Sweat," which opened on Broadway Sunday with the same cast, first appeared in November with the opening of the original Public Theater production. The action takes place in a fictional bar in Reading, Pennsylvania. After what went down. Our, "Sooo much more helpful thanSparkNotes. He offers guidance that is bluntly, candidly phrased, but also empathetically considered. T he main themes in Sweat are race and class in the workplace, the effect of work life on the family, and economies and individuals. What Nottage captures brilliantly is the way work, however hard or demanding, gives people an identity and purpose. Cynthia gets the promotion, and Tracey wonders if its just because Cynthia is Black. CHRIS: Dude, its just something I gotta do. everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of Sweat. They are getting out of jail after a conflict they were both involved in. When American playwright and screenwriter Nottage won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for Sweat in 2017, she became the first and only woman to have won the prize twice, having also won it for Ruined in 2009. This revealed that the play was not just about economic stress and angry intoxicated individuals, instead, it was about the extreme violence there is towards people of color. Synopsis for SWEAT: SWEAT is a 2015 play by American playwright Lynn Nottage. "Sweat - Themes" eNotes Publishing Get professional help and free up your time for more important things. online is the same, and will be the first date in the citation. We are left hoping the characters will attempt to make amends as we see the effects of the conflict. Beyond that, however, Mara doesn't project the character's humanity, which leads a character meant to propel the story to instead fall flat. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, The Circuit: Stories from the Life of a Migrant Child, Fabulation, or The Re-Education of Undine. The original text plus a side-by-side modern translation of. "My students can't get enough of your charts and their results have gone through the roof." It won the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. If you are an individual with a disability and desire an accommodation, please contactSusan Sanders prior to the event. There are other minor characters in the plot of the play. Jason, in particular, is notably altered by his time in prison, where he becomes a white supremacist. Students With the opening focused on Chris and Jason, but the bulk of the play resting on their mothers, the audience investment from one set of characters to another feels destabilizing. In addition to being a play on serious themes, "Sweat" is an an award . Order original paper now and save your time! Management wants to cut wages, and the union will have to vote to accept the concessions or go on strike. Working with this diverse cast of student actors to climb inside this story has been a gift. Giving:540-231-8014,hkobia@vt.edu. Detailed explanations, analysis, and citation info for every important quote on LitCharts. Less work. Lynn Nottage: 'Nostalgia is a disease many white Americans have', Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. Creating notes and highlights requires a free LitCharts account. American playwright lynn nottage won the 2017 pulitzer prize for drama for. Were a team, you cant leave!! Give to BMCC 1 Mar. Struggling with distance learning? Race and class in the workplace: Nottage explores the. Based on extensive interviews with residents of the rustbelt town of Reading, Pennsylvania, it shows the anger and despair that helped fuel the election of Donald Trump. Find additional parking information here. You dont know what its been like to walk in my shoes. date the date you are citing the material. I wanna say that. Sweat switches between 2000 and 2008 as Lynn Nottage tells the story of a group of friends who work together on the factory floor. Tracey and Jessie grow bitter. New York, NY 10007 Tracey talks about an upcoming promotion at work and how there is a rumor that they want to promote someone from the floor to a manager position. Media Inquiries: 540-232-8574,jennykb@vt.edu, Alumni Relations:540-231-8364,robynes@vt.edu online is the same, and will be the first date in the citation. He finds out through his Latino network that the plant is hiring, which the owners have hidden from the other workers. As such, the play shows how economic, Sweats cast of characters reads as distinctly human: none are wholly good nor wholly bad, and nearly all make mistakes that hurt themselves or their loved ones. I hope a lot of people come to see it.. First and only job. Though the play is brimming with these rich themes, the execution does not always succeed. The employees work lives and decisions about organizing likewise affect their children. Sweat is preceded by an excerpt from Langston Hughes's "Let America Be America Again," a poem that critiques the false promise of the American Dream and encourages poor and working-class Americans (among other marginalized groups) to rise up and "make America again"essentially to "redeem" the oppression they've faced and the opportunities More heat. The plot consists of many different characters. As mentioned earlier , when Nottage does use aspects of spectacle , it emphasizes these themes further , aspects like lighting . Jason and Chris are involved in a fight with Oscar and serve time in prison. Doheny Library: PS3564.O795 S94 2017 o Nottage, Lynn. For online purchase, find ticket links here. He learns that the cost of being hired is to become a scab when the others go out on strike. Director Lisa Peterson uses television screens to document major world events that led to the collapse of the American factory system, such as the financial crisis and bailout of 2008 and the election of George W. Bush in 2000, so that the audience can travel back to a precarious time not very different from 2018. Not us. The last date is today's Lynn Nottage began working on the play in 2011 by interviewing numerous residents of Reading, Pennsylvania, which at the time was, according to the United States Census Bureau, officially one of the poorest cities in America,[3] with a poverty rate of over 40%. Academic Policies Essay Example: What Is The Theme Of Sweat By Lynn Nottage Sweat was a meaningful production as there are many important themes to take away from the story. Sweat, Lynn Nottage's play about discrimination at the workplace and the effect of economic downturns, returns to Philadelphia, courtesy of the Old Academy Players. In the world of the play, attempting to raise ones status and transcend ones current situation breeds resentment among the very friends who commiserated with that situation. 30 December 2016. You got a problem, you tell me to my face. Human Development News|Languages and Literatures News|Philosophy News|Political Science News Found a perfect sample but need a unique one? By clicking Receive Essay, you agree to our, Stereotypes inThe House on Mango Street Essay Example, Theme of Sexism in The Scarlet Letter Essay Sample, Argumentative Essay: The Dehumanization Of The Holocaust, Role of Social Class in Jane Eyre (Essay Sample), The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver Book Review, Essay Sample on Fahrenheit 451: The Frightening Analogy Between Societies, In Cold Blood and Criminal Justice Essay Example, Class Hierarchy inThe Great Gatsby Essay Example, Scrooge's Transformation in Dickens' A Christmas Carol Essay Sample, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. Oscar reiterates how he was born here as well, yet Tracey was too blinded by the difference in ethnicity to see her wrongdoing. Centered on the working class of Reading, Pennsylvania, Sweat tells the story of a group of friends who have spent their lives sharing drinks, secrets, and laughs while working together on the factory floor. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Well-Read Black Girl: Finding Our Stories, Discovering Ourselves at the best online prices at eBay!

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