College of Education and Behavioral Sciences News

He’s been called Broadway’s favorite tap dancing man,  and this week WKU alum Jeremy Benton is back in Bowling Green to star in Saturday night’s production of White Christmas.

WKU’s Amy Bingham caught up with Benton on campus in this week’s View from the Hill.

It’s just a coincidence that the tour of White Christmas kicks off at SKyPAC in Bowling Green this weekend, but Jeremy Benton says when he found out, he quickly arranged an opportunity to meet with students while he was here.

Jeremy Benton has had his share of success since he came to WKU in the mid-‘90s.

“It’s deja vu.  It even smells the same.”

Now he’s back sharing his skills.

Offering a masterclass to tap students teaching what else?  A big production number from White Christmas.

“Pretty much a (clap) wake up for you in the morning that’s for sure.”

“I wasn’t so nervous about picking up the steps  I guess.  It was more of finding myself in the style which is what I’m gonna have to do here in a few months when I go out and audition in the real world.”

Benton says those glimpses into the real world were memorable when he was at WKU.

 “It was good for me as a student to see somebody doing what I wanted to be doing actually out in the world making a living and doing it.”

Now he hopes to be part of someone else’s memory.

 “He was at one point at my level and one point in this school and is now doing this professionally.  That’s a really nice path to see very much laid out in front of you.”

Benton also told the students how lucky they are to be in this environment.

 “It’s the best decision I made because I got so much dance training here, so much, even more than some conservatories.”

“Having him come back shows that somebody did do it so my feelings of preparedness aren’t fake.”

Benton’s feelings about dance and WKU keep him coming back.

 “That’s another reason I never turn down an opportunity. I want other people to know this style and love the old movies the way I loved them when I thought I invented tap in my yard in Springfield, Tennessee.”

Benton plays the role of Phil Davis in Irving Berlin’s White Christmas the Musical this Saturday night at 7 at SKyPAC.