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. The play was produced Off-Broadway in 2016 and on Broadway in 2017. Chris remembers his fingernails digging into his palms. Their steel mill, Olsteads, is making some changes and the blood, sweat and tears, not to mention the generations of loyalty these workers have shown, dont seem to amount to much. So does the fact that it marks the belated Broadway debut of Ms. Nottage, a justly acclaimed dramatist of ambitious scope and fierce focus. Gain full access to show guides, character breakdowns, auditions, monologues and more! Tracey is a middle-aged white woman of German descent; she's Jason 's mother and Hank 's widow. In Reading, Pennsylvania a group of factory workers are living their lives. STAN: Look. Started in 74, walked in straight outta high school. CYNTHIA: [] You know after everything. Lynn Nottage - Wikipedia LitCharts Teacher Editions. Cynthia sits alone in the bar, fantasizing about going on a . With the hard-drinking Jessie (Alison Wright), these women form a triumvirate that gathers regularly at their hangout to celebrate one anothers birthdays and swap workplace gossip and grievances. Sweat (Play) Plot & Characters | StageAgent She tells him that she and Tracey no longer speak after everything that happened. Well, my familys been here a long time. Oscar aint getting rich off your misery. When Oscar returns, she hurls racial slurs and goes to lunge at him, but Stan holds her back. Undine Barnes Calles Fabulation or, The Re-Education of Undine 2 I come here from North Carolina at seven. MONOLOGUE: Sweat - YouTube Until the plays penultimate scene, Sweat keeps the nature of its climactic act of violence a secret, and the sense of mystery is underscored by questions posed and unanswered between mothers and sons, and the men and their parole officer, Evan (Lance Coadie Williams) in the 2008 scenes. PDF downloads of all 1725 LitCharts literature guides, and of every new one we publish. Lynn Nottage explains how a broken city gets a turn onstage in her play Sweat., There are rumors of imminent layoffs, though, which grow louder during the scenes set in 2000, along with speculation that the entire plant might relocate to Mexico. Change). Jessie (K. T. Vogt), passed out at a table in the corner, isnt exactly doing her part to celebrate the birthday of Tracey (Terri McMahon), who we eventually learn is Jasons mother. Just as Oscar goes to take some beer crates to the back, Oscar walks back in, looking uncomfortably at, Olsteads isnt Oscars faulthes only trying to make a living just like they are. That Cynthia is black and Tracey and Jessie are white becomes an issue in a way it never was before. Oscar tells Tracey that him working at Olsteads isnt personal, but Tracey counters that to her, it is personal. Upgrade to PRO The play returns to Jason and Chriss separate parole meetings with Evan in October 2008. SWEAT Broadway Reviews | Broadway World Guide written by Nemuna Ceesay But I meancmonyou guys coming over here, you can get a job faster than. Sweat Act 2, Scenes 1-3 - eNotes.com Jason panics and goes to leave, but he stops when Stan enters to wipe down tables. Nobodys going anywhere. Lynn Nottages Sweat gives us characters filled with the good and the bad and asks us to reflect on our own views and the views of others. No thank you. You can also copy the link and paste it in your browser. After what went down. Nottages characters were based on personal research and interviews she conducted in Reading throughout 2011. Monologue - Tracey from Sweat - YouTube Tracey's monologue to Cynthia from Lynn Nottage's Sweat Tracey's monologue to Cynthia from Lynn Nottage's Sweat. TRACEY: Well, I got you beat by two. He, too, worked in the factory, as did his father and grandfather, until an accident caused by a faulty machine almost cost him a leg. 255 0 obj <>/Filter/FlateDecode/ID[<4E7A45B1E121404A9924C6C88D9A82A6>]/Index[239 26]/Info 238 0 R/Length 81/Prev 701207/Root 240 0 R/Size 265/Type/XRef/W[1 2 1]>>stream When Stan attempts to break up the fight, Jason accidentally hits him in the head with a baseball bat, causing a traumatic brain injury. A week later, Chris, Jason, and other union members protesting on the line get into a physical fight with the Latinx temp workers at Olsteads. New York, NY, Escape To Margaritaville But Chris has his heart set on following his own pathits just something he has to do. Were a team, you cant leave!! While they talk, Oscar comes into the bar to get his things from the back and say goodbye to Stan just as Tracey comes out of the bathroom. On July 4, Chris and Jason run into Brucie at the bar, and they tell him that Olsteads moved three mills out of the factory over the holiday weekend. Tracey? They also discuss Freddy Brunner, an acquaintance who recently burned his own house down. She says that the U.S. plant has gotten too expensive to operate, and because of NAFTA, Olsteads can easily outsource labor to Mexico. Ms. Nottages colloquial dialogue doesnt approach or even attempt his singing lyricism, but Jessie delivers a beautiful monologue about the life she might have led had she not, when still a teenager, started working in a factory. Find related themes, quotes, symbols, characters, and more. Sweat explores how industrial decline affected workers in the former steel and textile town. (The unobtrusively on-target set is by John Lee Beatty, with costumes in the same vein by Jennifer Moeller.). Stan warns Oscar that he is putting himself in a dangerous position and stirring animosity among longtime employees. The full script is available in print and e-book at multiple area libraries. CYNTHIA: More money. Cynthia shares Chriss news about Albright, and Brucie disapproves of the tuition cost and of Chris leaving Olsteads. From first moments to last, this compassionate but cleareyed play throbs with heartfelt life, with characters as complicated as any youll encounter at the theater today, and with a nifty ticking time bomb of a plot. Chris tries to break it up, but Oscar headbutts him, and, Would not have made it through AP Literature without the printable PDFs. Jason is horrified to realize that Tracey is highit seems she developed an addiction to pain medication while Jason was in prison. 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. The issues this drama raises painfully timely ones, I hardly need add surface organically from the circumstances. 3) If you have trouble submitting or are unable to film yourself, dont worry. Anyone can read what you share. Tracey, a middle-aged white woman who works at the local Olstead's Steel Tubing plant, is adamant that German immigrants like her grandparents built Reading from the ground up and made it what it is today. Our, "Sooo much more helpful thanSparkNotes. Sweat by Lynn Nottage - The Monologue Blog CYNTHIA: Ive stood on that line, same line since I was nineteen. With its attentively-crafted, compassionate examinations of the displaced working class, Sweat exposes the human costs of late-stage American capitalism. Teachers and parents! Nottage's characters were based on personal research and interviews she conducted in Reading throughout 2011. New York, NY, Accessibility Statement Terms Privacy |StageAgent 2020. JASON: Shit, I just kinda thought wed retire and open a franchise together. [1] It won the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Buy new (amazon), new (dramatists play service) or used. The play is also set at a pivotal transitional time in American industry, when many longstanding factory jobs were outsourced to other countries (as a result of the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA). Winner of the 2017 Pulitzer Prize. Chris Monologue from "Sweat" by Lynn Nottage - YouTube PDF SWEAT - Dramatists Play Service The way the content is organized, Tracey is a middle-aged white woman of German descent; shes. The two women begin talking about recent changes at Olsteads: theres an open position for Warehouse Supervisor, and to Traceys surprise, Cynthia is thinking of going for the job. Afterward, they go to the barwhere Jessie is once again passed out at a tableand excitedly tell Stan about it, but Stan isnt impressed. TRACEY: Yeah? Nottage never tells us whos right or whos wrong, but always shows us whos human. You'll also get updates on new titles we publish and the ability to save highlights and notes. Girl, hes a loser. They also discuss Freddy Brunner, an acquaintance who recently burned his own house down. View more posts. Tracey and . Besides, Oscar would need to be in the union and to know someone at the plant to get a job there. He thinks Jason and Chris should move on and get out of Reading. First and only job. The bar that is the principal location for Sweat, Lynn Nottages bracingly topical portrait of American dreams deferred in working-class Pennsylvania, is a place where friendships go to die. College/University, Diverse Cast, Ensemble Cast, Mature Audiences, Professional Theatre, Regional Theatre. Jason is hurt that Chris didnt tell him until now, and hes adamant that Chris cant leave Olsteads because theyre supposed to be a team. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Jason (Stephen Michael Spencer), with white-supremacist tattoos etched into his face and neck, reacts with sullen anger to questions about his prospects. Jason comments that Oscar is kind to take care of him, and Oscar replies that this is how things should be. Changing the subject, Oscar notes the loud party in the bar, and, the counter. Shes is upset that Cynthia seems to be ignoring her and sucking up to management. He struggles even with this basic task, and it is clear that Oscar employs him out of empathy, the desire to give Stan a sense of purpose. She asks Chris to tell her what happened back then, because she still doesnt understand. Lynn Nottage Monologues Monologues from shows associated with Lynn Nottage Start: There you have it! Oscar, the often-ignored Colombian American busboy, escorts her to the bathroom. So does the presence of Stans helper, Oscar (Carlo Albn), whose family comes from Colombia. If he was here I wouldnt stop you. CYNTHIA: Fuck her. We ask that you provide your own costumes (contemporary tee shirts, baseball caps, bandannas), makeup, and props (beer and shot glasses, cigarettes, keys). Filming yourself from a hand-held camera will be fine. var addy8a2f2e70f3ae0d82a8dceea5de10147e = 'auditions' + '@'; The following month, Oscar tells Stan that hes taken on some temporary hours at Olsteads because it pays so well, but Stan warns him that doing so will anger the floor workers whove been locked out. Tracey's rude behavior toward Cynthia is driving a wedge in their decades-long friendship. Stan is now severely disabled with a traumatic brain injury; he struggles to hear or speak. Suddenly, they hear a drunken commotion from the bathroom, and Cynthia and, him out after his 21st birthday last October. Review: Lynn Nottages Sweat Examines Lives Unraveling by Industrys Demise, https://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/17/theater/review-lynn-nottages-sweat-examines-lives-unraveling-by-industrys-demise.html. Jason and Chris speak separately to their parole officer, Evan. Tracey bitterly wonders if Cynthia received the promotion because she is Black. STAN: Okay, you keep telling yourself that, but you saw what happened over at Clemmons Technologies. Esther Intimate Apparel 3 Sweat Act 1, Scene 6 Summary & Analysis | LitCharts Three exemplary charactersTracey, Cynthia, and Jessieare all working class . But this much-trafficked watering hole also exerts a dangerous gravitational force, the kind that holds people in place when they should be moving on. Sweat is a two-act play written by Lynn Nottage. Everyone complains about the factory, but the work it has provided for generations of Reading residents shapes the rhyme and reason of their shared world. This poignant play takes a look at the de-industrial revolution through the lens of a history play, but also delves into the issues of today: the economy, immigration, race-relations in America, and politics. Though it takes place in 2000 and 2008, and one of its characters swears he will never vote again, Sweat is the first work from a major American playwright to summon, with empathy and without judgment, the nationwide anxiety that helped put Donald J. Trump in the White House. Tell me about whats been going on. hb```d`~1!Ru|G/Vgk`#k[-85?J.YI{fU4/xu.13bj78a$B3x+J%Rn-p]?ORZf4(sH#6Y. Thank you for checking out my post! Generations dictated by the factory floor and the whims of American capitalism: A scene from Sweat, Lynn Nottages new drama, in a production at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. The play instantly becomes a grim social drama about factory operators in the NAFTA era who may . Review: As blue collar jobs leave a Pennsylvania town, Lynn Nottage's 'Sweat' - Lynn Nottage scene: Daniel Oakley (JASON) and Aaron Moore (CHRIS) Daniel 'Joey' Isaac-Meir Oakley 125 views 8 months ago Another Round with SWEAT: Creating a Community On Stage.