Casting notice for Lynn Nottage’s Sweat for Tacoma Arts Live Synopsis: Lynn Nottage’s Sweat<https://www.pulitzer.org/winners/lynn-nottage-0> follows the lives of a handful of residents in a small town in Pennsylvania, many of whom have worked for decades at their local steel factory. Set in a local watering hole - the town’s bar - where characters come to terms with the realities of cultural shifts and downsizing, the play is fraught with tension and raw Drama. The underlying rumble of change not only affects relationships between friends and family, but also threatens the livelihood of an entire community. Closely linked to historic and political events that took place between 2000 and 2008, the play echoes today’s enduring tensions surrounding race, culture, income, and technology. As Lynn Nottage’s fast-paced dialogue churns up the mud and grit of the complex nuanced picture of the industrial revolution that closely mirrors the anxieties of our present day political landscape. Characters: Jessie - (Caucasian) Female, 40-49 A steel worker; former hippie, with a warm disposition and easy access to her humor; drowns her sorrows in booze; a sloppy drunk whose anger and disappointment with the cards she’s been dealt bubble up when she drinks. Cynthia - (African American) Female, 40-49 A steel worker; starting at the plant as a teenager, she and Tracey have been best friends ever since, and have given their lives to the line; focused, ambitious and sturdy; mother to Chris and wife to Brucie. Despite the derision of her colleagues, she applies for a promotion and finally escapes the line and becomes a floor manager; Cynthia’s loyalty to her colleagues and friends is tested when the closing of the plant is announced; ultimately she can’t save them or herself. Tracey - (Caucasian) Female, 40-49 A steel worker and true company loyalist. She has given her life to the line; funny, brassy, bossy, opinionated and fiercely loyal; mother to Jason. As her life begins to spiral out of control she can no longer manage the cocktail of disillusionment and anger that simmers below her surface. Jason - (Caucasian): Male, 20-30 Strong build of a young man who went from the gridiron straight to the production line; a steel worker with deep working class roots, he is proud of his blue collar heritage and still has faith that his life will be spent in the factory; youthful, tough, funny and charismatic; in prison he hardens into a white supremacist, his optimism transforming into rage. Chris - (African American): Male, 25-45 An actor who can convincingly play across an age divide between late 20’s-late 30’s/early 40’s; Jason’s best friend; muscular, charismatic, youthful, warm; a steel worker, with aspirations to educate himself and find a life beyond the steel plant; eventually hardened into a disillusioned ex-con; he turns to religion to help him fight his darkness within. Brucie - (African American): Male, 25-45 Chris’ father and Cynthia’s estranged husband. Handsome, but fading fast; a former textile factory worker, now a smooth-talking heroin addict. He was once charismatic, but has fully succumbed to his addiction; still capable of being charming, but as his circumstances become increasingly desperate so does his behavior; Evan - (African American): Male, 25-45 firm, direct and no-nonsense; a career parole officer; he is committed to helping his parolees succeed through a mixture of tough love and challenge; he can more than take care of himself. Stan - (Caucasian): Male, 50-59 friendly but stern, a former steel worker who was injured at the plant; is now the bartender at the local bar that the plant workers frequent; he has watched the lives of his customers play out and is deeply empathetic with their struggles; but his word is the rule of law; it would be a mistake to cross this man. Oscar - (Latin): 20-30: Quite and hard-working American-born busboy of Columbian descent, who remains virtually invisible to the customers - white or black - until he responds to a Spanish-language handbill seeking non-union labor at the steel plant. Please send a resume and headshot to jwcooper2015@gmail.com<mailto:jwcooper2015@gmail.com> Emily Alm Associate Director of Presenting Tacoma Arts Live O: 253.573.2361 * M: 253.334.0593 TacomaArtsLive.org<http://www.tacomaartslive.org/> * Box Office: 253.591.5894 Pantages Theater ● Rialto Theater ● Theater on the Square ● Tacoma Armory [cid:image002.jpg@01D4777C.B6552370]<http://www.tacomaartslive.org/> New name. Same passion. Broadway Center for the Performing Arts is now Tacoma Arts Live. 901 Broadway, Suite 700 ● Tacoma, WA 98402 Our mission: Energizing community through live performance. #TacomaArtsLive #WeAreLive Upcoming events <https://broadwaycenter.org/events/broadway-center-season> * Virtual tour<https://broadwaycenter.org/virtual-tour> * Education through the arts<https://broadwaycenter.org/education> * Support our work<https://broadwaycenter.org/support>