A play about teenage junkies in a rehab hospital who try to rise above the dark rims of drug addiction as well as trying to survive against racism, corrupt guards, is coming to El Camino.

The play “Does a Tiger Wear a Necktie?” directed by Jerry Prell, is a play that will tackle drug addiction.

Prell is a director and an actor, being in films such as “American Sweetheart” and “Project 1091,” according to his IMDb.com profile.

He mentions that the play will showcase tragedy, lost lives, desperation, as well as a loss of hope.

“It really is a tragedy, but it’s about young adults who cope with drug addiction,” he said.

Prell also said that this show is a “different kind of play” because it’s edgy. Also, it has drama and some on-stage violence.

The play will showcase the characters in a rehab hospital on an island, where they are there to get themselves clean and away from drugs.

“The island (the characters) are stuck on is a metaphor for being stuck in this drug addiction,” Prell said.

In order for the actors to shape their characters, Prell had former drug addicts who are now counselors come in to have them tell their story to the cast.

“I wanted to show them what it’s really like to be an addict,” he said.

Prell said college students can relate to this play due to all of the characters age range.

When addressing how the actors should be on stage Prell mentioned about honesty and realism.

“It’s tough getting the cast behind it,” Prell said. “They have to believe what they are saying.”

Mario Sosa, 22, theater major said he went to Skid Row to do more research on drug addiction in order to shape his character even further.

“I took a trip to Skid Row in Los Angeles to experience the life of an addict,” he said. “My character is based on these traits such as the ups and the downs moments as well as the moments where he’s generally happy or sad.”

Sosa plays the character Ponti, a Spanish American who is recovering from a heroin addiction. The character is portrayed as if he had started at a very young age.

“I hope former drug addicts can reflect back to my character,” he said. “Reflect back to what they used to be and why they stopped.”

This will be his first acting role at EC.

Sosa said that the one thing he hated about his character is that he smoked cigarettes.

“I hate the fact that he smokes cigarettes because I personally don’t smoke at all,” Sosa said. “I had to use an electronic and a nicotine free one, in order to fit into my character.”

“I hope the crowd comes with an open mind,” he said.”Drug addiction is a sensitive topic.”

EC student Dan Le, 22, music major said he heard parts of the play and was excited to see it.

“I walked out of my class and heard commotion from the play,” he said. “It looked pretty exciting.”