Late rappers Tupac Shakur and Notorious B.I.G. will be among the characters portrayed in Ames Saturday in “The Outcasts-Ebony Kiss.”

Jungle Studio U.S.A. along with Iowa State student Chii Ughanze-Onyeagocha are hoping to inform and enlighten those who don’t understand what it is like to grow up black through the play.

A mobile theater that travels across the country, Jungle Studio U.S.A. produces thrilling dramas on the life of black people all over the world.

After spending a few years at a university, the troupe will then move on to other campuses. The group has currently set up shop at Iowa State and will most likely be here another couple of years.

Chii, who wrote “The Outcasts-Ebony Kiss,” grew up in Nigeria and had only met three white people in her life. Upon coming to America and enrolling in ISU, she was placed with a white roommate. This was very hard on both of them.

“It was hard to even look at each other because our physical differences were so overwhelming,” Chii said.

Chii soon moved out and eventually ended up off campus with another white woman. Things were very different though because her new roommate was not afraid of her differences.

It was through her that Chii learned that physical differences do not matter.

Another ideology that Chii had never encountered was racism. As soon as she moved to the United States she quickly learned about the idea of racism and what it was like to be black in America.

However color wasn’t the problem. Chii had witnessed white people doing what she later learned was “tanning” themselves to make their skin darker.

At that point she knew the racial problem was not color but violence, and she was inspired to write a poem which she later transformed into the play.

“Our theme is: ‘To stop violence, America has to stop creating the conditions that promote violence,'” Chii said. “Violence is a big part of this society. The children born into the poverty and gangs aren’t creating the conditions but have to live with them. That kind of environment in the inner cities pushes blacks and other minorities to violence.”

The first part of the play is a musical war between Shakur and Notorious B.I.G. It deals with how the two were very gifted but were swallowed up in violence.

The parts are portrayed by actors from ISU who try to create a real life interpretation of Shakur and Notorious B.I.G.’s raps using their own street language.

“Listen to the rap music,” Chii said. “The inner city kids are talking to you. Ask them why they’re hurting. Once their lives reach peace, rap will be peaceful and gangs and guns will leave the city.”

Levar Franklin, freshman in electrical engineering, plays the part of Notorious B.I.G., and is glad to portray his favorite rapper. He wasn’t expecting to get the part.

“I was on my way to class when Chii approached me and asked if I knew anyone who could play the part. I didn’t know anybody that big, but then she asked me to do it instead,” Franklin said.

However, he added that he hasn’t really thought about turning acting into his career.

The story is different for Donovan Tyler, sophomore in performing arts and psychology. He started out shy in high school, but after taking a drama class, he changed his career path.

He stars as Shamal, an African American boy who has moved into a white neighborhood with his family, where they have escaped gangs and violence but face the new problem of racism.

“People need to be aware of the reality of this problem, that this stuff actually goes on,” Tyler said. He also said when people watch this play, they shouldn’t divide it into a black and white situation but look at it as dramatic acting instead.

The “Ebony Kiss” portion of the play gets down to the heart of being a black male in America. It addresses questions such as why black males are the most endangered species in America, Chii said.

Professional American-Trinidadian actress Ann Marie portrays attorney at law Molissa Prat, who will try to answer these questions. Chii portrays a white woman who wants Shamal dead and his mother the “pompous black bitch, Attorney Molissa Prat nailed.”

“The ‘Ebony Kiss’ will be the drama of the year,” Chii said. “It will correct black history that has always been told by whites.”

“The Outcasts-Ebony Kiss” is sponsored by the Black Student Alliance. It will be performed in the Great Hall of the Memorial Union Sunday at 8 p.m. Tickets are $3.50 at the door.