DeWitt High School Stand and Deliver
Students from Mid-Michigan are using the stage as a means to provide hope and inclusion in a country clearly divided.
A group of high school theater students from DeWitt, Michigan and their passionate Drama teacher are tired of waiting for solutions, instead they are becoming the solution. As concerns, questions, and uncertainty continue to swirl around inside the minds of young leaders trapped in an education system under constant scrutiny and skepticism, a group of young change agents in Michigan are fighting back. Hope, healing, and unification have allowed these young thespians to utilize their talents in the Dramatic Arts to educate and ignite honest dialogue with educators and audiences while sending a much needed message where positivism upstages negativity.
As the future of education remains up in the air and those in the profession under constant scrutiny, it is vital to remain hopeful. As unity and empathy seem to be topics of discussion in many circles today, any actor or director will tell you they have long been commonplace in the theater. Understanding this, students are taking matter into their own hands as they are actually living the title of the play they are moving from page to stage. Although many schools and students spend a great deal of time focusing on the achievement gap, this unique group is addressing one gap that oftentimes goes ignored, ...the courage gap.
Stand and Deliver, the play based on the 1988 award winning film, provides just that, a bit of much needed hope in a country clearly divided. While concerns, questions, and chaos in Washington seem to be causing unwanted confusion for many, this urban tale provides hope and these students are standing strong and delivering an important message in order to create positive change. The show speaks directly to the heart not taking no for an answer. It is an emotionally packed roller-coaster that speaks the common language we all share, regardless of our differences, one of laughter, tears, and love. Please stand and deliver by helping us in working together to create a culturally collaborative tomorrow that serves the needs of all students.
Stand and Deliver, still considered the "Rocky" of educational films, tells the true story of a group of inner city students from Garfield High School in East Los Angeles who work to prove the skeptics wrong. It also features the relentless pursuit of their new teacher Jamie Escalante from Bolivia. His quirky sense of humor and odd teaching methods coupled with his determination to disrupt the status quo ends up saving students from becoming victims of a failed system and an ill-funded school where gangs, drugs, and dropouts are sadly the norm.
Director Jeff Croley will proudly be sharing the stage with his courageous students portraying the role of Jaime Escalante. The role was originally made famous by Edward James Olmos, who played Escalante in the movie and was later nominated for an Academy Award for his performance. Croley, like Escalante is relentless in his pursuit to challenge the status quo. He is determined to use the art of improvisation to motivate and empower his students to achieve what at first glance seems unbelievable. Escalante used Math to change lives, Croley uses the Dramatic Arts. Limitless possibilities await these fearless leaders who are not afraid to think harder than they work.
Although Stand and Deliver is now nearly 30 years old it is still very much relevant to the many pressing issues currently facing schools, communities, and our country. This story is for anyone who believes in the power of possibility and the limitless pursuit of happiness. It's a show for the supporters of education and for those who desire to the keep the artistry in the teaching profession. It's a show for the doers and dreamers, the underdogs and the underprivileged. It is for those who have fallen victim to broken systems full of arrogance, ignorance, and a lack of opportunity yet somehow still found a way to beat the odds and persevere. It is for the not so easily intimidated change agents and workers whose work is not defined by a clock on the wall but rather when the work is done.
"Act As If..," productions and DeWitt High School are celebrating positive change and the nobility of the teaching profession and those it impacts on a daily basis. This group of caring students invite audiences to escape the chaos for a couple of hours and join together to send a message of empathy, empowerment, and hope while striving together to take a step in the right direction.
This show is PG-13- It is hopeful, relevant, and heartwarming. Please help us in promoting the show and by continuing your efforts to create positive cultures where diversity is warmly embraced and inclusion and respect the norm
"Being different is the one thing we all have in common" - Jeff Croley