Photo courtesy of NYU Tisch
Walking around Choate’s campus, hearing the soundtrack of Hamilton: An American Musical being played, sung, or discussed is not a rare occurrence. The show has been a success both in New York and in Chicago, as well as among members of the Choate community, so we are lucky to call an the actor of the Chicago production one of our own. Jin Ha ’08 is cast in the world-renowned show Hamilton in Chicago. He is a member of the ensemble, playing the father of the Schuyler Sisters, James Reynolds, and Philip’s doctor. Ha is also an understudy for Alexander Hamilton, Aaron Burr, Laurens/Philip, and King George III.
Ha began his interest in the performing arts in middle school, playing Phantom in Phantom of the Opera, and then later being a member of Choate’s oldest a capella group, The Maiyeros, which he was co-president of for two years. Looking back, Ha cannot recount a single event beginning his career in theater, “It’s been a long journey of certainties and uncertainties that have led to where I am today.” Ha associated his draw to theater with moving around as a child, commenting, “The sense of community in theater comforted me.” He was also drawn to acting after seeing others act. “As an immigrant from South Korea by way of Hong Kong, I learned a lot about the English language and about Western culture from the countless hours I spent watching TV growing up,” he explained. Ha stated, “The thrill and ecstasy of performing has always been with me. I’m scared of heights, so the adrenaline from performing in front of 2,000 people every night is more up my alley — as opposed to jumping off cliffs or parasailing.”
Choate was a large factor in Ha’s pursuit of a career in the arts. Ha gushed about his alma mater’s program: “Choate has, hands-down, one of the best art centers I have ever seen if not have ever worked in, and that includes my time at Columbia University and at New York University.” Surprisingly, Ha did not participate in Choate’s Arts Concentration program because he was unsure about pursuing arts. Instead, Ha was in spring musicals, like his older sister, Jeein Ha ’00, and acted in several plays, such as one directed by Ms. Tracy Ginder-Delventhal.
Ha took Acting 100 and he recalled that the class “blew his mind.” He says that the course taught him his most important lesson as an artist, the value of failure. “I remember failing so many times and so hard in class. Learn to fail and fail better. It’s so crucial.”
Shockingly, Ha did not major in theater in college. He applied to the school’s theater program, but later changed his major to East Asian Languages and Cultures. Ha explained, “Choate fostered my interest in theater by fostering my interest in people.” He added, “To be an actor is to understand the human condition.” To anyone interested in the arts, Ha’s only advice is to “keep learning about the world. Study science. Study mathematics. Study history, especially. Study literature. Everything informs your work as an artist.”
Ha regularly asks himself why is he doing what does. His answer is quite wise: “I’m interested in deconstructing and restructuring the all-too-common narratives that have and continue to saturate our media, art, and entertainment.” Ha strives to represent people of color, different sexual orientations, and levels of ability. “It’s about representation in a meaningful way. Not two-dimensional caricatures or archetypes to serve the same outdated tropes or stories or protagonists. Ableism is quite rampant in our society, and people with physical or mental disabilities (or who are differently-abled) deserve more representation and humanity in our art and media.”
Ha’s goals for the future are lofty, though he’s no doubt committed to the performance arts. Some of his goals include dismantling the patriarchy, eliminating micro-aggressions worldwide, and, with art as the medium of his message, telling stories that have never been told before. As Ha wisely stated in his final remarks, “I identify as an activist first, artist second.”
