University Players shine in ‘Stand and Deliver'

Theatre • "Stand and Deliver," the story of inner-city high school students who passed the A.P. Calculus test in the face of adversity, is being performed by the University Players through Nov. 20. Keith Ian Polakoff

 

By Austin Lewis
Online Forty-Niner
Staff Writer

"Stand and Deliver," the second play of the Cal State Long Beach University Players' 2004-05 season, opened at the Studio Theatre on Friday. The play is based on Robert Bella's Oscar-nominated motion picture, which Ramon Menendez and Tom Musca adapted to the stage.

"‘Stand and Deliver' promotes the idea of setting high goals in order to achieve high results," said special guest director Edgar Landa. "It is a theme that is timeless and is applicable to all aspects of our lives."

The play, based on a true story, focuses on the struggles of Jaime Escalante, a teacher at Garfield High School in East Los Angeles. He arrived at the school intending to teach a computer class, but, due to budget cuts, he ended up teaching a math class.

The students in his class had all but lost their willingness to learn. Because they lived in East Los Angeles, education was the least of their concerns. As Raquel Ortega, one of Escalante's coworkers at school said, "It's not ‘Are they going to make it to college?' it's ‘Are they going to make it home?'"

Escalante began by teaching his students basic algebra. It was difficult at first — his students simply didn't want to learn — but Escalante used his sense of humor and a variety of unconventional teaching techniques to catch their attention. He showed his students that an education would allow them to build a car instead of buying one and own a restaurant instead of simply working at one. After finding out that his school was in danger of losing its accreditation, Escalante set a new goal: he would train his students to pass the A.P. Calculus test.

In order to adequately prepare for the test, Escalante required his students to attend classes over summer vacation. His students found it difficult to learn math on a hot summer day in a classroom with no air conditioning, but Escalante simply instructed them to think cool thoughts.

All of Escalante's students passed the A.P. Calculus test at the end of the school year. Instead of being a rewarding end to years of hard work, however, the test was the cause of controversy when Educational Testing Service officials accused Escalante's students of cheating. Escalante and his students fought the accusation because they feel it was racially motivated.

"Stand and Deliver" featured energetic performances from the entire cast. While there were often several actors on stage at the same time, it was never too difficult for the audience to comprehend everything. The majority of the play takes place inside Escalante's classroom, but constant set changes — moving desks and other props to different corners of the stage — prevented the setting from becoming stale. Use of blackboards at the back of the stage and the occasional student speaking to other characters from the catwalk overhead also kept things interesting.

The University Players will perform "Stand and Deliver" through Nov. 20.