It’s been seven years since Lin-Manuel Miranda won the Tony Award for best composer and brought down the house when he delivered the tightest, sickest—and likely only—acceptance rap in the ceremony’s history.

It was the perfect confirmation of In the Heights’ groundbreaker status as the cool hip-hop and salsa musical that would upend Broadway stalwarts and make theatre relevant to young people. And thanks to its setting in New York City’s Washington Heights neighbourhood, which is home to a predominantly Dominican-American population, In the Heights put stories and communities in the spotlight that had largely been missing from the stage.

In the Heights centres on Usnavi—a role Miranda originated and for which he earned a Tony nomination—who operates a tiny bodega and dreams of a better life back in the Dominican Republic. The play provides a snapshot of three pivotal days in his barrio, and the lives of Usnavi and his neighbours, family, and friends.

It’s the kind of role Luc Roderique’s been waiting his whole life to play.

“I remember when I was 17 years old, I had to decide whether I wanted to follow theatre or whether I wanted to follow rap,” Roderique recalls, during a rehearsal break at the Arts Club’s Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage. He admits with a laugh that he made the “less cool” decision, with his love of theatre triumphing. Now the two worlds can collide.

“There was something in the poetry in hip-hop, the lyrics, the style that really resonated with me,” Roderique recalls. “I picked it up, started rapping with my friends, going to the parks, beatboxing and freestyling. He has a line, Lin-Manuel wrote in here, ‘Nights in Bennett Park, blasting Big Pun tapes’. That was me and my friends in Clare Park in Ottawa, blasting Big Pun tapes. We did the exact same things! I remember hearing it for the first time and being like, ‘I have to be in this musical.’ It was almost built for me.”

As part of his research, Roderique travelled to New York and explored the areas and landmarks of In the Heights, and had the opportunity to check out Miranda’s new show.

“I’ve wanted to see it for the last two years,” Roderique says. “I’ve been following him on Twitter and, like, dreaming of going, and he’s a genius. He’s only grown as a composer and a writer, definitely not a one-hit wonder. I believe he’s going to be the next Sondheim.”

Miranda’s also changing the face and sound of musical theatre, bringing diversity to the stage in every way, from music and narrative to characters and setting.

“Growing up mixed-race in Canada, it was very hard to find where I could fit in, even in the theatre world, and even nowadays it’s a difficult thing, and I feel like I finally kinda found myself,” Roderique says.

What Miranda’s doing, what he’s creating, is, according to Roderique, the future of theatre.

“I can still remember seminal performances where, ‘Oh, okay, someone who looks like me, who seems to be telling stories that I can relate to, is on-stage and it’s having an effect on me,’ ” he says. “I think that’s how we save theatre: for young people of different races, backgrounds, immigrants, whoever they may be, to see their stories reflected on-stage. That’s what’s going to keep theatre alive and what’s going to keep the next generation wanting to come to the theatre.”

In the Heights runs until June 7 at the Arts Club’s Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage.