Columbia College Chicago Theatre Department student Jelani Smith, a senior in the Theatre Department’s Acting BA program, is featured in Just Numbers, a new “lyric play” presented by Chicago Slam Works Ensemble Theatre October 7-November 11 at Stage 773, located at 1225 W. Belmont in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood. The play concerns a group of high school students who find themselves staring down the barrel of another standardized test. Each has a story to tell and obstacles to overcome as they all attempt to receive an education. In Just Numbers, the players become an urban chorus of the youthful and hopeful, the forgotten faces of Chicago Public Schools. Their frustrations manifest as freestyles over tabletop beats. Their anger spills out in the form of cutting words and revelations. Their hope bursts out of a system designed to thwart it. For tickets, call 773-327-5252 or click here.