SAN DIEGO — When I first read the premise for The Great Leap, I imagined an errant ball hitting a patron in the third row. No need to worry. Even though there is a hoop hanging over the middle of the house, they only mime those shots. Projection Designer Blake McCarty presents a flowing river of images of basketball games, newsreel footage and stills of party propaganda that sweep us into playwright Lauren Yee’s complex, bi-cultural world.
“When you’re on the court, it is always your shot.”
Coach Saul Slezak thinks he “brought basketball to China” in the 1970s, but this is bupkes. Chairman Mao himself was a great fan of the game. It was one of the few sports not banned during the Cultural Revolution because the focus on teamwork was useful for teaching Communist principles. Manny Fernandes is comically abrasive as Saul. His coaching is such a mixture of foul-mouthed expletives and Yiddishisms that his translator can’t really translate what he’s saying to the players. He also said, “No Chinese team would ever beat an American team.” That’s why they’ve invited him to return with his USF team for a “friendship game” against Beijing U.
“I want everyone to know that I’m not just good ‘for a Chinese player.’”
Scott Keiji Takeda plays Manford, a young man with a talent for basketball and a chip on his shoulder. Even though he’s still in high school, he’s desperately determined to join the USF team for this game in Beijing and he won’t take no for an answer. Manford has to convince both the coach and his guardian, Connie (Keiko Green). His relationship with his real mother was “complicated.” Loving and supportive with a bit of Tiger-Mom, she can’t refuse when she sees how much this means to him. With fast moves, patter like a dribbling ball and sheer chutzpah, he gets his shot.
“Growing up, you didn’t want to be someone. … Being someone could get you killed.”
Edward Chen is Wen Chang, whom Slezak calls “Sparky.” First, he’s Slezak’s bemused translator. Later, he’s the basketball coach of Beijing U. Nebbishy at first, he finds the world of basketball both wonderful and frightening. Wen Chang came of age during China’s “Great Leap Forward,” 1958-1960. Wanting to industrialize out of an agrarian society, China instituted some disastrous policies that led to starvation. Because any criticism was seditious, no one dared tell Chairman Mao that the programs weren’t working. Wen Chang survived by keeping his head down in humble obedience. But there’s a fire that burns deep within.
When the team gets to Beijing, it’s the spring of 1989. Demonstrators in Tiananmen Square are calling for Western reforms, growing in numbers and getting more difficult to control. Officials’ skins are very thin and any hint of encouragement by the American visitors will not be tolerated.
The actual game plays out with breathless intensity. It’s more than a game. It’s more than a personal grudge or a conflict playing out halfway across the world. The Great Leap is the burning desire in all of us to stand up, speak out and have our voices heard. We have our own opportunities to right some wrongs this year. Will we take our shot?
The Great Leap by Lauren Yee is playing at the Cygnet Theatre in Old Town, through Feb 16.
And that’s showbiz.
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Eric Tauber is a freelance writer specializing in coverage of the arts. He may be contacted via eric.tauber@sdjewishworld.com