Review: SWEAT at Copley Theatre, Aurora IL

If the first production at the new Copley Theatre in Aurora is an indication of what the new BOLD series will be, patrons will be riveted to the action on the stage.

The current production, Sweat (the 2017 Pulitzer prize-winning play written by Lynn Nottage under the emotional and heart stopping direction of Andrea J. Dymond) grabs your brain, heart and soul from the first scene. You know something is going down and now you will see the process.

Two young men at different times speaking with their parole officer (effectively played by Bryant Hayes). As it turns out, they knew each other and were best of friends in the past. The first of many flashbacks begins. The audio during the darkened scene change is news reports of the economy and other stories in 2000. As you listen to these recordings, your brain is automatically transported back to that time. When the lights come up, the scene is happening inside a bar in Reading, PA. The impeccable set, courtesy of Jeffrey D. Kmiec, is exactly what this writer remembers about the look of a 2000 bar.

In this flashback we see 3 women, Tracey and Cynthia, who are dancing (Linda Gillum and Shariba Rivers making us want to dance along) and one, Jessie, with her head on the table - (Tiffany Bedwell showing the other side of a work day). We can tell they know and adore each other. As their story evolves through the flashbacks, their relationship begins to deteriorate especially when Cynthia and Tracey apply for a management position. Cynthia eventually ends up getting the promotion. As the story moves on, Tracey begins to wonder if Cynthia was given the job because she is African-American. During a drunken conversation, Tracey brings this up. Cynthia skillfully moves the conversation on.

During the flashbacks, the 2 young men appear. Jason (Gage Wallace) is the son of Tracey and Chris (Emmanuel K. Jackson) is the son of Cynthia. They also work at the plant. Chris is planning on going to Albright to study education. When he discusses this with Jason and Stan the bar manager (Randy Steinmeyer's smart and sensitive portrayal makes us wish he were the bar manager guru), Jason tries to dissuade him from going. Stan is a former mill employee until he suffered a leg injury and that forced him out of his job. The other employee of the bar is Oscar (Jordan Anthony Arredondo characterization is very poignant). Oscar feels the patrons of the bar don't see him and don't want to speak to him because of his ethnicity.

Each scene is prefaced with the news events of that time. Audience members are shaking their heads or heads down and remembering the times. It is a brilliant lead in to each scene. The first audio is George Bush and the last is Barack Obama.

The backdrop of this play is the closing of the mills in Pennsylvania and how employees - 20 years and more - were treated. People weren't allowed in to retrieve the articles from their lockers. The corporations knew how to bust the union and the union, in turn, giving a crap deal to the employees so that they would quit. The mills could then hire people at a lower wage and work them more hours.

This is what happens with Oscar the bar employee. He sees a posting at the Latino community center about jobs beginning at $11/hour. He asks Tracey questions about this. She doesn't believe that this is a real posting. As this story line continues, it turns out to be true. Stan warns the bar patrons to not do anything to Oscar. At this point, Stan pulls out a baseball bar and hits the bar with it. When Oscar is trying to leave the bar to good to the plant, Tracey, her son Jason and Chris all give him a hard time and Jason goes after him. The fight scene is very realistic. My guess is no one in the audience breathed. The fight was choreographed by David Woolley

with assistance from Andrew Trygstad. There is an incident. Jason and Chris run out of the bar.

Also a part of this storyline is Brucie, Cynthia's estranged husband. He works at a different plant. That factory is trying to push out the union workers including huge pay cuts. Brucie's life is spiraling downhill at a very fast rate due to the job stress and trying to stay sober.

The final scene is 2008. It takes place back in the bar with Jason, Chris and a new bar manager and an old face helping.

The last line of the play is "That's how it outta be". We are all in agreement.

This cast of brilliant actors - most of whom are making their Paramount debut - deserves the standing ovation they received. You can see on their faces the exhaustion that comes from putting oneself into the work. Bravo to them and to the new Copley Theatre. It is going to be a wonderful journey.

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