Culture | Theatre Four black employees struggle to get by at a Detroit car factory as the auto industry and the city it supports collapse around them in Dominique Morriseau’s easygoing play. It’s a beautifully-observed, well-made comedy drama about hardscrabble existence, and Matthew Xia directs a fine cast with laid-back assurance. If you come to it cold you’ll have a splendid time.
If you’ve seen either Sweat or Clyde’s , both by Lynn Nottage and both mounted at the Donmar, you might get a sense of déjà vu and of slight disappointment, as they explored similar territory – albeit in a Pennsylvania setting – in more depth. Anyway, there’s plenty to enjoy here, not least the way Morrisseau captures the functional intimacy and (mostly) good-natured rancour of workplace relationships. Cocky young Dez (Branden Cook) works on the assembly line every day with feisty veteran Faye (Pamela Nomvete).
They play cards for cash in the break room, he chides her for smoking, but is stumped when she asks if he knows the name of her son. The script also neatly tracks the way routine incrementally changes as life gets more pinched. Queenly, pregnant Shanita (Racheal Ofori) becomes increasingly preoccupied with her home-prepared food, her dreams, and Dez’s flirtation.
Supervisor Reggie, whose mother was apparently Faye’s lover, has made it into middle management and home ownership: caught between his bosses and his vulnerable friends, he resorts to sticking up increasing.
