PLAY GETS METH MESSAGE ACROSS TO STUDENTS

Thumping bass, double entendres, the occasional bleep and hip-hop
made the message stick.

Fourteen-year-old Gordie Whitehouse remembers one nasty fact about
the corrosive quality of meth.

"I was surprised that it could melt a stick," said the Maple Ridge
secondary student.

Cranked is a hip-hop exploration of the world of crystal meth,
addiction and recovery, featuring Kyle Cameron and beats by Vancouver
hip-hop artists Kyprios and Stylust.

The play performed by Green Thumb Theatre at Maple Ridge secondary on
Thursday rapped the message home -meth is bad.

Cranked follows Stan, aka "definition," a horror film buff and a
freestyle DJ, as he preps for an upcoming freestyle competition
without the crystal meth habit that dominated his previous life. His
memories of the films, the meth highs and the rush of music all
collide as he struggles to recapture his life.

At 17, Stan has lost a coveted recording contract, his family and
lives on the streets.

He steals and hustles to score his next fix.

He picks at fossilized chewing gum on the sidewalk, sure it's a shard
of meth. He never sleeps. Cranked captivates the audiences because
Stan tells a compelling tale. He is hip and speaks a language the
students can understand. He doesn't preach.

Grade 12 student Amanda Harris has heard there is a lot of meth in
Maple Ridge. "And it's really addictive," she said.

Meth use isn't an issue at school, but performances like Cranked get
students talking about the effects of the drugs, Harris notes. On
Thursday, school corridors were buzzing with raving reviews about the
cool play.

"By the end of the day everyone was talking about it," Harris said.

" It was the presentation that made us listen. I think if we see more
stuff like this, I guess we do take meth more seriously."