(including. After what went down. TRACEY: Well, I got you beat by two. Personally, this part of the play resonated with my feelings towards the racial violence we experience today. 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. The bartender in the play is Stan. [16] The production transferred to the West End's Guielgud Theatre, running from 7 June 2019 to 20 July. CHRIS: Dude, its just something I gotta do. JASON: Shit, I just kinda thought wed retire and open a franchise together. Lynn Nottage, as she showed in Intimate Apparel, which was about a seamstress in the 1900s, has the capacity to dramatise work. They all work together and love to hang out at the local bar. Oscar is a Colombian American busboy at the bar. Teach your students to analyze literature like LitCharts does. To get a high-quality original essay, click here. [7], The play has been described as "a powerful and emotional look at identity, race, economy, and humanity. Peterson unleashes her actors like pinballs, bouncing off each other, intensifying until they explode in the climax. Library Nottage chose the Rust Belt town of Reading, Pennsylvania, because at the time of the plays composition, Reading was the poorest town of its size in the United States. Note: When citing an online source, it is important to include all necessary dates. 30 December 2016. Ive absorbed a lotta shit over the years, but I worked hard to get off that floor. . 100% plagiarism free, Orders: 7 Alas, its high production values can only do so much to hide the fact that Sweat leaves the audience feeling more like they've watched an extended soapbox speech rather than having spent time in the flesh-and-blood lives of its characters. Sweat. 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. However, several close relationships are challenged as characters try to pursue new opportunities and escape the very circumstance over which they bond with others. 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. 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. He learns that the cost of being hired is to become a scab when the others go out on strike. My students love how organized the handouts are and enjoy tracking the themes as a class., Requesting a new guide requires a free LitCharts account. Nov. 14 at 2 p.m. In this breathtaking new play, premiered in 2015, she tackles the devastating impact of loss of work and of de-industrialisation on modern America. The kind but stalwart officer (Kevin T. Carroll) hopes a reunion between the two will help heal their wounds. Stan seems to be the link between Oscar and the others, as the others treat Oscar like an outsider. eNotes.com As mentioned earlier , when Nottage does use aspects of spectacle , it emphasizes these themes further , aspects like lighting . Thus, these essays are of lower quality than ones written by experts. Teach your students to analyze literature like LitCharts does. New York, NY 10007 They are released in 2008. [3], The play also examines the disintegration of a friendship, after two of the women one white, one black apply for the same management job. After the lockout goes forward, Cynthias friendship with Tracey completely disintegratesand when the play jumps forward from 2000 to 2008, its revealed that theyve never reconciled. Characters such as Jessie use alcohol to cope with their problems to the point of being out of control, which was an important symbol specifically used by Jessica Hightower, Scenic and Properties designer of Sweat. As an experienced parole officer, Evan has a strong understanding of the personal struggles Chris and Jason are going through. The playwright shows how owners manipulate individual efforts to advance in order to destroy solidarity and instead foster suspicions, mistrust, and rifts between friends. Thats all I need to know. Variety described Nottage as going into "the heart of working-class America". Stay abreast of discount offers for great theater, on Broadway or in select cities. Since the twenties, okay? The play thus shows how changes in statusbeing promoted at work, reaching a higher socioeconomic class, or pursuing higher educationcan create tension and resentment among people who are all struggling to make ends meet, driving a wedge between even the closest of friends. Tickets, which are $12 for general admission and $10 for seniors and students, may be purchased through the Moss Arts Center ticket office in person or online. The main themes in Sweat are race and class in the workplace, the effect of work life on the family, and economies and individuals. Struggling with distance learning? Free shipping for many products! [5] Nottage herself even spoke at the strike, which is what made her realize she had to do more. [4] The play was produced off-Broadway in 2016, and on-Broadway in 2017. eNotes.com, Inc. Jump-start your essay with our outlining tool to make sure you have all the main points of your essay covered. Do you know what its like, she asks, to get up and have no place to go? For the equally tough Cynthia, work is a means of advancement and her union card is a symbol of racial acceptance. 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. publication online or last modification online. date the date you are citing the material. Print Word PDF. eNotes.com Nottage's characters were based on personal research and interviews she conducted in Reading throughout 2011. Club members can see a different show every night of the week. Donmar Warehouse, LondonBased on interviews with residents of small-town Pennsylvania, Lynn Nottages play vividly describes the betrayal and resentments of striking female factory workers in an era of industrial decline. I feel that its a common problem in our society to portray immigrants as needy and that they get special treatment for their race. You hear from the old gang? Detailed quotes explanations with page numbers for every important quote on the site. I also hope that they will understand the power of art and be more willing to engage with storytelling.. The Virginia Tech School of Performing Arts will present Lynn Nottages award-winning Sweat for eight performances, opening on Nov. 9 in Squires Studio Theatre. "My students can't get enough of your charts and their results have gone through the roof." Management's physical, intellectual, and emotional removal from workers on the factory floor allows them to ultimately outsource their jobs to Mexico (because they have so little connection to the labor that goes into these jobs, or to the human beings working them). This leads to a confrontation with Jason, egged on by his mother. The collection contains chapters on each of her major works . 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. JASON: [] But seriously, man, why didnt you tell me? discover the notice Sweat Tcg Edition English Edition that you are looking for. [17], The play was nominated for the 2017 Drama Desk Award, Outstanding Play and Outstanding Fight Choreography. Tickets will be available at the door in the Squires Student Center beginning one hour prior to the performance. In the midst of all this, Cynthia, who is African-American, is up for a management role after years of hard work, but her promotion leads to frustration as both the company and her friends use her as a scapegoat. Directions Refine any search. Sweat switches between 2000 and 2008 as Lynn Nottage tells the story of a group of friends who work together on the factory floor. Sweat is a 2015 play by American playwright Lynn Nottage. Three best friends, Cynthia (Portia), Tracey (Mary Mara), and Jessie (Amy Pietz), pass the time at the bar joking and drinking to obliteration in order to survive the daily grind. She has created exactly the ensemble piece she set out to create empathetic, searching, searing, honest, and full of humanity and I found exactly the same qualities in this cast as we have worked together. Jason The action takes place in a fictional bar in Reading, Pennsylvania. Lynn Nottage. Enjoy live events at insider prices. Lastly, although my point of interest related to the issue of diversity through the play, the violent hate crime towards Oscar was influential in the sense it led to a lot of reflection for the audience. Oscar shows her a flyer from the community center, written in Spanish, that mentions the openings and says nothing about needing to be in the union. The last date is today's 2023 eNotes.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 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%. Pietz portrays Jessie as a lonely woman hiding in a glass of alcohol. Tracey and Cynthia, in particular, are close friends whove shared many adventuresthey console each other, cheer each other on, and encourage each other to stay positive and have fun rather than dwell on the stress of work. Log in here. I do. A Critical Companion to Lynn Nottage places this renowned, award-winning playwright's contribution to American theatre in scholarly context. Nov. 912 at 7:30 p.m. "Sweat," Lynn Nottage's 2017 Pulitzer Prize-winning drama set in a faltering factory town in Pennsylvania, magnificently answers the call for more far-ranging American playwriting. I wanna say that. Oscar asks Tracey about job openings on the floor, and Tracey says he must have heard wrong because Olsteads is not hiring and you have to know someone to get in anyway. 2023 . These fights over workers rights have claimed large parts of the lives of all three men, and their mothers must await their sons release, knowing their criminal record and their experience of incarceration will stay with them forever. Thursday-Saturday February 23-25 at 7:30pm. 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. SWEAT is a 2015 play by American playwright Lynn Nottage. Sweat. During the play Cynthia applies for a managing job at the plant which causes some problems. The second date is today's publication in traditional print. Stan, a middle-aged white man with a limp, bartends, and when the two women invite him to dance with them, he refuses. CYNTHIA: [] You know after everything. LitCharts Teacher Editions. Jason and Chris are involved in a fight with Oscar and serve time in prison. The volume covers Nottage's plays, productions, activism, and artistic collaborations to display the extraordinary breadth and depth of her work. Race and class in the workplace: Nottage explores the. Ultimately, Sweat shows the interpersonal costs of raising ones station: when desperate people strive for more out of life, fellow desperate peopleeven, and especially, dear friendswill often respond with resentment rather than support. "[9], The play's political context has also been noted. Try it today! Less work. Though the play is brimming with these rich themes, the execution does not always succeed. He used to work at the plant but he was injured from a factory accident. Get professional help and free up your time for more important things. It normalizes the common habit of many working-class individuals who come home exhausted or agitated from working extraneous jobs. PDFs of modern translations of every Shakespeare play and poem. Last Updated on October 4, 2022, by eNotes Editorial. Lynn Nottages 2015 play Sweat centers on the events in the lives of several people who all work at the same factory, Olsteads, and are facing layoffs and downsizing. 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. Not us. 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. Divisions surface when the African American Cynthia is promoted from the shop floor to supervisor over the head of her white oldest friend, Tracey. There are a group of friends that work for the steel factory. Nottage researched her work in Reading and while there, gathered material for her play Clyde's, now extended through March 12 at Arden Theatre Co. Ed. Sweat challenged my thinking and led me to analyze serious problems that still have not been solved. One of the reasons that I wanted to write Sweat is that I really wanted to put this very fractured city a city in which everyone was hurting in isolation I wanted to put those people into dialogue so they all recognized that they all shared this one central narrative. College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences, Alliance for Social, Political, Ethical, and Cultural Thought, Department of Apparel, Housing, and Resource Management, Department of Human Development and Family Science, Department of Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures, Department of Science, Technology, and Society, School of Public and International Affairs, Center for European Union, Transatlantic, and Trans-European Space Studies, Center for Refugee, Migrant, and Displacement Studies, Kellogg Center for Philosophy, Politics, and Economics, News Stories on International Initiatives, Sweat explores themes of race, gender, ethnicity, class, and labor relations in a deeply human way, Winning words: Cara Daggett, Thomas Gardner, and Madeline Eberhardt honored with Phi Beta Kappa awards, William Price honored with emeritus status, A career and technical education alumnus reflects on his experiences in the School of Education, School of Education doctoral student receives prestigious internship, The Virginia Tech chapter of Omicron Tau Theta initiates eight new members, Heidi Anne Mesmer helps teachers decode reading instruction, Training and Technical Assistance Center at Virginia Tech supports students with disabilities across the region, School of Communication senior awarded inaugural Tech Sideline Endowed Scholarship, Cybersecurity expert offers safety tips for online holiday shopping, A new map reconstructs the social landscapes of Southwest Virginia prior to European arrival, Alumni Industry Leader Spotlight: Sofiat Abdulrazaaq, Nobelist Karen OBrien delivers lecture about climate change and society, Alumnus Kevin Roberts named next president of the Heritage Foundation, Tokyo Olympics a once-in-a-lifetime experience for School of Communication alumna, Michael Hughes honored with emeritus status, Researchers reflections offer insights on collaboration, Cadet chosen to highlight the colors at the Virginia game, Ending programs for gifted students wont create equity for rural youth, https://www.youtube.com/embed/YcReO9WfWeQ, Lights, gingerbread, eggnog some holiday sights and tastes have global roots, Virginia Tech School of Education nurtures STEM potential in the Mississippi Delta, Student-athletes excel on and off the court. 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