Sweat NYC Reviews and Tickets

83%
(685 Ratings)
Positive
91%
Mixed
7%
Negative
2%
Members say
Relevant, Great acting, Absorbing, Thought-provoking, Intense

About the Show

After a successful run at the Public Theater last fall, Lynn Nottage's drama about the collision of race, class, family, and friendship in Reading, PA transfers to Broadway. 

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Show-Score Member Reviews (685)

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182 Reviews | 31 Followers
92
Clever, Great writing, Relevant, Thought-provoking, Intelligent

See it if you like a blue-collar oriented, smart and well-written play with a highly-politicized contemporary theme.

Don't see it if you need to be entertained at the theater and not provoked or be forced to think

AEO
111 Reviews | 14 Followers
92
Absorbing, Great writing, Intelligent, Thought-provoking, Intense

See it if Smart and oh boy, relevant. Pulitzer Prize well deserved. Fans of. Lynn Nottage

Don't see it if If you think Trump (The Creature) should be president.

88 Reviews | 13 Followers
92
Absorbing, Great writing, Intelligent, Powerful

See it if You enjoy character driven, rapid fire dialog plays that pack a punch and keep you engaged.

Don't see it if You don't connect with the struggles of work class America

114 Reviews | 9 Followers
92
Intelligent, Resonant, Thought-provoking, Relevant

See it if you like plays about serious subjects that reveal the interplay between character and challenging situations beyond their control.

Don't see it if if you dislike tragedies and watching decent people move towards their downfall.

54 Reviews | 11 Followers
92
Brilliant, Thought-provoking, Relevant, Must see, Intense

See it if you like serious, relevant and thoughtful drama with excellent acting. Entirely deserving of this year's Pulitzer Prize. A must-see.

Don't see it if you only like musicals.

265 Reviews | 116 Followers
91
Riveting, Relevant, Great writing, Great acting, Absorbing

See it if This is an excellent play with well-defined plot and characters. Engaging example of a small town life in a factory torn upside down.

Don't see it if You don’t want relevant theatre or have to think.

137 Reviews | 32 Followers
91
Great acting, Great writing, Resonant, Must see

See it if you want to see outstanding actors in an engaging story of human dynamics, though a bit long it never drags, one of the best plays I've seen

Don't see it if you are looking for an uplifting story, you need a fully satisfying ending, you are offending by profanity (though never gratuitous).

85 Reviews | 104 Followers
91
Clever, Relevant, Resonant, Great acting, Great writing

See it if you are interested in relevant and complex social/political issues and America's ever-changing landscape.

Don't see it if you are racist and/or are not open minded about race and immigration. The show is beautiful and calls out some sensitive issues explicitly.

Critic Reviews (87)

scribicide
March 26th, 2017

"Obviously, 'Sweat' is a play that is much needed right now...Down to its corporeal title, [it] reminds us that art is concerned with what often gets lost in large-scale politics and economics: the human cost of progress."
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Out Magazine
March 27th, 2017

"Under Kate Whoriskey’s direction, this is pulled off with a lot of energy and surprising humor—the characters don’t seem to have a lot of introspective time—and a game cast gives it extra heft. Best of all are the three lead women as figures in an embattled landscape, navigating through it while trying to survive. Nottage won the Pulitzer for 'Ruined,' and with this, her first Broadway play, she’s achieved something earnest but worthwhile."
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StageZine
March 31st, 2017

“The ensemble cast is so powerful and the performances so strong that it is easy to overlook most of the thematic clichés and directing flaws...Although Whoriskey gets first-rate performances from everyone, she and fight director Toppo have trouble choreographing a violent fight scene...Although Nottage’s twists are a bit hackneyed, the cast brings a sense of authenticity to these hard-working people...Despite some shortcomings, ‘Sweat’ is a thought-provoking drama."
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Showbiz 411
March 27th, 2017

"'Sweat' gives poignant voice to a disenfranchised microcosm of the American heartland, as if Michael Moore’s Flint, Michigan had taken center stage. A fine ensemble is featured under Kate Whoriskey’s expert direction."
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Drama Queen NYC
March 29th, 2017

“An important play, but boy is it depressing…Nottage packs the play to bursting with thoughts, emotions and incident, and director Kate Whoriskey keeps all that on track and moving lucidly and fluidly. With all the points of view Sweat tries to cover, it is by necessity an ensemble piece, and is blessed with a ferociously talented cast. For me, Carlo Albán is the standout as Colombian-American barback Oscar, the person lowest in this vicious pecking order.”
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Let's Talk Off-Broadway
March 26th, 2017

"'Sweat' is not a perfect play but it’s important and by the end has great impact...A strength of this play is the thoroughgoing examination of the tragic effects on individual lives of the factory system and of Wall Street...Although the play moves cleverly through time, the first act feels static...The play comes alive in the second act...The cast is uniformly excellent...Nottage writes honestly, she gives us characters we care about."
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More Than The Play Blog
May 22nd, 2017

"Nottage has written authentic characters who struggle with challenges and face consequences that cause their lives to spiral out of control...Johanna Day and Michelle Wilson shine in these brilliantly written, juxtaposed characters...They are the driving force that propels the action of the play. Their portrayals are riveting, true, and genuine...Kate Whoriskey masterfully directed this superb ensemble cast. She skillfully builds tensions that explode with powerful human emotions."
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The Modernist Beat
March 27th, 2017

"Even though I was fully aware of its gut-wrenching conclusion this second time, I still shed a tear when it arrived. 'Sweat' should be required viewing for anyone living in our republic – it is that important...What Nottage has constructed is an American play for the ages, a tragedy of the American dream that would be appreciated by the likes of Arthur Miller and Clifford Odets...Simply see it."
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