Play based in Reading factory takes the stage at Steel River Playhouse
POTTSTOWN » It’s the year 2000 in Reading, Berks County. A group of friends go to work at the steel mill and then decompress at the bar as they’ve done for over 20 years. They don’t know that their lives are about to be uprooted.
Their steel mill is making some changes and the blood, sweat and tears, not to mention the generations of loyalty these workers have shown, don’t matter. These middle class, unionized, steelworkers have made plans to save money, go on vacations and then retire but when rumors start flying that the company is considering layoffs, and flyers are hung to recruit nonunion Latino workers for less money, the war between
community and capitalism begins.
“Sweat” takes the stage at Steel River Playhouse, 245 E. High St. in Pottstown, opening April 22.
Playwright Lynn Nottage spent time interviewing residents of Reading to capture the atmosphere of a town in decline before writing the play. Directed by Reginald C. Brown, this Pulitzer Prizewinning play explores the effects of the loss of jobs and the increase in racial tension on a working-class city that was classified as one of the poorest in the US at the time the play was written.
This play contains violence as well as adult language and content.
Brown notes “I am greatly pleased and privileged to direct and share the play “Sweat,” by the illustrious
playwright Lynn Nottage. “Sweat” is a work of immense power and timeless relevance. The play is reflective of actions and occurrences that prove ruinous to a once convivial workingclass community, yet it also serves as a microcosm for society as a whole.”
The show runs Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. from April 22 through May 1st.
Tickets are $29 for adults, $24 for Seniors 65+, and $17 for students. Tickets may be purchased online via the link at www.steelriver.org, or by calling the box office at 610970-1199. Patrons are asked to mask up upon entering the theater. For more information about volunteer opportunities or other questions, please email info@ steelriver.org.