From BURLOAK THEATRE GROUP.
Please submit your interest by completing this
AUDITION FORM.
Director: Randolph Burlton
Producers: Cheryl Cartwright, Kim Colburne, Michelle Righetti
Director's vision statement
In directing Sweat, my vision is to immerse the audience in the gritty reality of a community grappling with the economic and social forces that threaten to tear it apart. By focusing on the raw emotions and interpersonal conflicts, I aim to highlight the resilience of the human spirit amidst the crushing weight of deindustrialization. The staging will be grounded in realism, with an emphasis on the shared spaces that both unite and divide these characters, making the story resonate with today's ongoing struggles."
-Randolph Burlton
Rehearsals: October 2024 - January 2025 at the BOTG Studio (1200 Speers Road, Unit 7, Oakville)
Mondays, 7:00-10:00 PM
Tuesdays, 7:00-10:00 PM
Saturdays, 10:00 AM-2:00 PM
Load in/Tech: Monday, January 13th - Wednesday, January 15th
Performances: January 16th-19th, 2025 at the Oakville Centre for the Performing Arts (130 Navy St., Oakville Ontario)
SWEAT tells the story of a group of friends who have spent their lives sharing drinks, secrets, and laughs while working together on the factory floor. But when layoffs and picket lines begin to chip away at their trust, the friends find themselves pitted against each other in a heart-wrenching fight to stay afloat. This play is set in Reading, Pennsylvania and takes place in 2000 and 2008.
Evan, 40s
Evan is an African American man in his forties; he’s Chris and Jason’s parole officer. Evan serves an important role as a confidant and voice of reason for Chris and Jason. However, he also has no patience for nonsense.
Jason, 21 yrs & 29 yrs
Jason is a young white man of German descent; he’s Tracey’s son and Chris’s best friend. At 21 years old, he is involved in a crime that leads to a prison sentence. We also see him at 29, and how his time in prison has affected him. He's hot-headed and passionate, yet troubled and disaffected.
Chris, 21 yrs & 29 yrs
Chris is a young African American man; he’s Cynthia and Brucie’s son and Jason’s best friend. At 21 years old, he is involved in a crime that leads to a prison sentence. We also see him at 29, after being released from prison and struggling to reintegrate into society. He is introspective, hard-working, and riddled with conflicting emotions.
Stan, 50s
Stan is a white man of German descent in his fifties. He’s the bartender at the bar where most of the play takes place. He serves as a beloved friend, confidant, and wise sage for his regular customers.
Oscar, 22 yrs & 30 yrs
Oscar is a young Colombian American man; he’s the busboy at the bar where most of the play takes place. As tensions rise in town, people become increasingly hostile toward Oscar and he faces racism from the customers at the bar.
Tracey, 45 yrs & 53 yrs
Tracey is a middle-aged white woman of German descent; she’s Jason’s mother. She uses humour as a means of escape and loves to drink, gossip, and dance. She’s also a hardworking, traditional woman who dislikes the ways her town has changed over the years.
Cynthia, 45 yrs & 53 yrs
Cynthia is a middle-aged African American woman; she’s Chris’s mother and Brucie’s wife. She is headstrong and principled but feels shame and guilt about her position at the factory she works at and how it impacts her friends around her.
Jessie, 40s
Jessie is an Italian American woman in her forties and a close friend of Tracey and Cynthia. Jessie is divorced and dissatisfied with her life. As a result, she’s seemingly developed a problem with alcohol abuse.
Brucie, 40s
Brucie is an African American man in his forties; he’s Chris’s father and Cynthia’s estranged husband. Brucie has become addicted to drugs and feels hopeless & purposeless, all the while facing racism from white union members.
----
BurlOak Theatre Group seeks to promote inclusion in every aspect of our work. We believe that diversity creates a more vibrant and innovative community. We welcome and encourage artist submissions from diverse cultural, gender, racial, and sexual identities. 
