By Taylor Vincent

“Ghost in the House” is a play based on the life of Jack Johnson. The show is scheduled to debut on Thursday, April 9 in Schaeffer Auditorium. The play is based on Jack Johnson’s struggle with discrimination as a professional boxer in the early 1900s.

“Ghost in the House” references Jack Johnson as the ghost who motivated Muhammad Ali during his boxing career. The play tells the story of Johnson as he becomes a famous boxer; he rises as a star because of his talent, but his skin color causes a riot with the white population. The audience follows Johnson’s struggle as he experiences racial turbulence in his early years of professional boxing.

Tony Todd—best known for his role in “Candyman”, “Platoon”, “The Final Destination Series” and the voice of The Fallen in “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen”—stars as Johnson in the upcoming play. Ernie Hudson and Frank Megna wrote, “Ghost in the House.” Megna, an established Hollywood actor and writer, is also the director.

The play recounts the racism and cruelty of white America against a man whose talents went beyond boxing.  Johnson was a well-known womanizer who loved his lush lifestyle.  He was a man of key interest within the turmoil of racial discrimination and one of the most famous black men in the world during his time.

Kutztown University Business Innovators (KUBI) is hosting the show as a project they’ve been working on since last semester. President of KUBI, Josh Moyer, said, “We are looking forward to hosting this event after working diligently last semester as a team trying to make this show happen.”

According to KUBI advisor Professor Ogden, Ernie Hudson was originally cast as Johnson. Yet, he said, “I can’t wait to see Tony as the lead.”

Frank Menga, friends with Ogden, said, “I love his work and have seen this show before. It’s great. My KUBI team has been working hard getting it to campus.”

Tickets can be purchased online at http://www.purchase.tickets.com with the keyword “Ghost in the House.” They are $15 for students and $25 for general admission. Students can also purchase their tickets at the McFarland Student Union Information desk with a valid student ID.