Ben Crawford graduated from Sahuaro in 2000. Ben was very involved with drama, choir and athletics while at Sahuaro. He was the lead in the musicals, Anything Goes and brought down the house as Tevya in Fiddler on the Roof. Ben was also a member of Dr. Ashcraft‘s performing choir and a member of the boys’ volleyball team.
After graduating from Sahuaro, Ben attended the University of Arizona where he initially intended to study medicine but after his first year decided to “follow his heart” and pursue a career in theatre arts. While at the University of Arizona, Ben performed in Oklahoma, Guys and Dolls, Little Shop of Horrors and played John Wilkes Booth in The Assassins. He earned rave reviews from many local and national critics. Ben moved to New York to fulfill his lifelong dream of performing on Broadway. After three short months, Ben was cast as an understudy in the Broadway revival of Les Miserables. Afterwards, Ben was cast as the standby for the lead in Shrek. Ben eventually became the lead for Shrek and even got to perform in the Macy’s Day Parade. Ben then took on the role as Don Price in Big Fish. Moving into other venues, he now also has the lead acting role in a recent TV documentary entitled The Standbys, a documentary of Ben’s life on Broadway.
Symphony performances have also become part of his resume as he has performed across the country with many symphony orchestras, including the Indianapolis Philharmonic Orchestra, Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, and the National Arts Center Orchestra in Ottawa, as well as the Chicago Symphony.