CENTENARY STAGE COMPANY AND CENTENARY UNIVERSITY’S NEXTSTAGE REPERTORY OPENS SWEAT BY LYNN NOTTAGE NEXT WEEK

Centenary Stage Company and Centenary University’s NEXTstage Repertory presents 

Sweat 
by Lynn Nottage

WHEN: March 25–29, Thursday, March 25 at 7:30 pm; Friday, March 26, at 8:00 pm; Saturday, March 27, at 8:00 pm; Sunday, March 28, at 2:00 pm; and Monday, March 29, at 7:00 pm. Centenary Stage Company will also offer a special free live stream of the Saturday, March 27 8:00 PM performance.  The live stream will be made available at centenarystageco.org/nextstage-rep-sweat.
WHERE: Little Theatre at 400 Jefferson St. on the campus of Centenary University.
TICKETS: $15.00 for adults, $10.00 for children under 12, and are available on-line at http://centenarystageco.org or by phone at (908) 979 – 0900.

The NEXTstage Repertory program is made up of Centenary University theatre students. These students are the cast, crew, and the creative team. The program with works in conjunction with the professional, Centenary Stage Company, gives students the opportunities to create high quality theatrical pieces, all while learning about and becoming a part of, every facet of producing theatre. The production is directed by Stephen Davis, an Associate Professor of Theatre Arts at Centenary University who has extensive professional theatre credits outside of Centenary as well as onstage with CSC. He was most recently seen playing Timothy Cratchit in Stephen Temperley’s, A Christmas Carol, this past winter. The cast includes current Centenary Students, Kamirah Owens, Jack Epstein, Malachi Bobien, Jeremy Ashton, Luis Rodriguez, Emily Bennett, Kylah Wilson, Serena Buchan, James Brandes, and Alumni of C.U. Ameer Copper.

Set near the playwright’s hometown of Reading, PA, Pulitzer prize winning SWEAT details the life of a close-knit group of friends who have been affected by their factory closing, ending the only way of life the town has known for generations.

Hailed as, “Lynn Nottage’s best work.” by the New Yorker, “She offers a powerful critique of the American attitude toward class, and how it affects the decisions we make. Sweat has fraternity at its heart, but also the violence, and the suspicion that can result from class aspirations”. In one of the poorest cities in America, Reading, Pennsylvania, a group of down-and-out factory workers struggle to keep their present lives in balance, ignorant of the financial devastation looming in their near future. Based on Nottage’s extensive research and interviews with residents of Reading, SWEAT, is a topical reflection of the present and poignant outcome of America’s economic decline and a nuanced yet powerful drama that reminds audiences of the stacked deck still facing workers searching for the American dream.

Lynn Nottage is the recipient of two Pulitzer Prize Awards for Drama for SWEAT (2017) and Ruined (2009). She is the first woman playwright to be honored twice. 

For more information or to purchase tickets, visit centenarystageco.org or call the Centenary Stage Company box office at (908) 979 – 0900. The box office is open Monday through Friday from 1 – 5 PM and two hours prior to all performances. The Centenary Stage Company box office is located in the Lackland Performing Arts Center on the campus of Centenary University at 715 Grand Ave. Hackettstown, NJ. Centenary Stage Company can also be found across social media platforms; Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Like and follow to receive the latest in CSC news and special offers.

Centenary Stage Company remains committed to the health and safety of our community and adheres to all requirements set forth by the State of New Jersey including, but not limited to; observing social distancing, limited capacity, and requiring masks or facial coverings. For more information regarding CSC COVID-19 policies visit centenarystageco.org/faq.

The 2020-2021 season of performing arts events at the Centenary Stage Company is made possible through the generous support of the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, the NJ State Council on the Arts, the Shubert Foundation, the Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation, the Sandra Kupperman Foundation, and CSC corporate sponsors, including Premiere Season Sponsor The House of the Good Shepherd, Silver Sponsors Hackettstown Medical Center Atlantic Health System, Home Instead Senior Care (Washington), and Fulton Bank, and Centenary Stage Company members and supporters.