Sections With âIn the Heights,â Anthony Ramos Finds Stardom on His Own Terms Teachers urged him to cultivate a more ethnically ambiguous image. He refused, and now heâs having a breakout moment. Anthony Ramos in Bushwick. Spike Lee said of the actor: “He was not handed this artistic life. He had to put the work in.”Credit...Camila Falquez for The New York Times June 3, 2021, 5:00 a.m. ET The Bee Geesâ âStayinâ Alive,â that classic dance-floor ode to doing whatever it takes to keep your head above water, was playing in a coffee shop in Brooklyn when Anthony Ramos sidled in one chilly April morning.