NEW YORK—In “Sweat,” playwright Lynn Nottage puts a human face on a sadly all-too-familiar subject, the plight of manufacturing jobs. Powerfully acted and strongly directed, the story sharply resonates due to its lack of easy answers. Yet the very familiarity of the tale is also the play’s weakness.
Things begin in Reading, Pennsylvania, in 2008 when Jason (Will Pullen) and Chris (Khris Davis), recent parolees after an eight-year stretch, are being interviewed by their parole officer (Lance Coadie Williams).
We jump back eight years to learn the backstory of Jason and Chris, their mothers Tracey (Johanna Day) and Cynthia (Michelle Wilson) respectively, as well as the mentality of a good part of the town itself. Specifically, many of Reading’s middle class depend on the local factory for their livelihood.
