The latest production from Crosstown Artists is Slammed — by name, in its narrative and in nature. The first instance is obvious. The second part is reflected in a story that understands life's tougher times. And the third? Well, that's made plain by a performance that mixes music by local bands, graffiti art and slam poetry.
This edgy new work tells the tale of downtrodden 15-year-old Jake Ryan, a teen neglected by his father, abandoned by his mother, and just generally feeling pushed around by the world. He's far from happy, but as he tries to carve out his own niche, he realizes that everyone else is struggling too.
If Slammed seems more than a little close to home, that's because it's meant to, set as it is in a fictitious but familiar high school setting. And if Slammed seems more realistic than these things usually do too, that's because it was written by a former teacher. Here, yesterday's teen troubles become today's thought-provoking theatre.