Family, community and self-discovery. These three universal themes will bring realism to John R. Emens Auditorium tonight as award-winning production "In The Heights" takes the stage.
"In The Heights" tells the story of a tight-knit community from Washington Heights, a lively multiracial area near Manhattan. The story explores the lives of characters in the community, showing the hardships and triumphs of living in the heights.
Ben Perez performs the role of Kevin Rosario, a middle-aged husband and father from Puerto Rico who owns a car service in his new home of New York City. Perez said he modeled his character after his own father.
"I am basically playing my father. My father passed away about three years ago due to cancer and unfortunately, he'll never see me get to play this," he said. "My dad was very quietly supportive of what I wanted to do, even if it conflicted in what he wanted for me."
Perez described "In The Heights" as a contemporary musical depiction of a family community. He said playing his part in the musical is a great gift.
"I'm a Latino actor and there aren't that many representations or positive portrayals on stage of Latino characters," Perez said. "It's a thrill to play a part that is not so stereotypical."
For 16 years, Perez worked as a lead singer in a show on Princess Cruises. He said he hasn't done anything like "In The Heights" before. He described it as an enormous amount of work, but admitted he still finds the experience incredibly satisfying.
"It's been a wonderful experience so far," Perez said. "Touring on a Broadway show is a multitude of emotions: the traveling, the applause, when something goes wrong backstage; it's so many things. The sense of being in different places all the time and traveling with the same group of people and doing our best to recreate something special every night, those aspects are similar [to the cruise show]."
Perez attended Citrus College in Glendora, Calif., where he studied choral music and theatre. He said it's wonderful to be performing at Ball State because it's been so long since he was a student. He said college campuses are always full of life, excitement, creativity, enthusiasm and energy.
Perez also said he has great memories of doing theatre productions at his alma mater. He said it was where he got his start and was given the incredible tools to go forward in life.
"Citrus not only gave me a love for music and for theatre but the discipline," he said. "Learning 40 pieces of music in a short amount of time, being forced to learn choreography that I wasn't always comfortable with, wearing costumes I wouldn't choose for myself — all these things get thrust upon you in a theatrical situation and you have to adjust very quickly. Those are tools that never leave you no matter what industry you go into after that."
Perez said he thinks the audience can expect to laugh, be moved and hopefully exhilarated by the production. He said he thinks the production has multigenerational equality that speaks to many different levels of society.
"The characters in the show have got common problems and everyday problems that I think are universal," he said. "The audience can take away morals such as respect for the elderly, support from your family and loved ones, the value of friendship and the sense of community."
Freshman secondary education, health education and physical education major Brittany Feltner said she is really looking forward to "In The Heights." She said she is especially looking forward to the dancing and said she loves movies and musicals.
Feltner said she doesn't know a whole lot about the play, but she thinks it is great that Ball State brings such big productions to campus and allows students to see them for free or little cost.
She said her theatre 100 professor canceled class so that the students could see "In The Heights" without having their grades marked down. She said she loves that Ball State can offer its students opportunities like this.
"I hope that from this production, students get a better understanding of life outside of our hometowns and Ball State," Feltner said. "Our country is becoming more diverse, and we, as Americans, need to learn about other places, people and cultures — so that we can be the best citizens we can be. I think some students may be offended. But I do believe that some students will start thinking in a different way and understand other cultures better."
"In The Heights" will be at Emens Auditorium tonight only. The show begins at 7:30 p.m., and tickets are free for students until 6 p.m. and cost $10 at the door. For more information regarding tickets or the show, contact the Emens Box Office at 765-285-1539.
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