TV Reviews : ‘Between Friends’: An Educational Drama on AIDS Prevention on KCET

Adolescents making choices is the theme of “Between Friends,” a forthright educational drama about AIDS prevention airing Sunday at 5:30 p.m. on KCET Channel 28.

Written and directed by Severo Perez and produced by the San Francisco Department of Public Health for Latino junior high school youth, the half-hour drama is a survival tool, accessible to teens of any background.

Monica (Roxanne Evelyn Cardoza), a troubled teen whose mother is too sick to keep tabs on her, is dangerously engaged in casual sex, drugs and alcohol abuse. Her friend Gloria (Estrella Esparza) walks a straighter path, but still sneaks out to an unsupervised party.

Along the way, there are lessons in peer pressure resistance and straight talk about condoms: Don’t use them if they’ve been in the sun or are old; they can’t be re-used, and animal skin condoms don’t protect against disease.

When Monica’s mom turns out to have AIDS and the scared teen-ager angrily cries, “Why wasn’t she more careful?,” Gloria points out Monica’s own high-risk behavior. A sympathetic social worker (Socorro Valdez) explains exactly how the HIV-infection is spread; it’s obvious that Monica is a candidate for HIV testing.

There’s solid information here for teens facing tough issues. Cardoza’s moving performance underscores that information with poignant urgency.