THE LARAMIE PROJECT Opens This Weekend at Williams Theatre

More than 20 years have passed since residents of Laramie, Wyoming, were interviewed by a theatre company from New York City in an effort to discover their reactions to a brutal crime that happened in their midst. The result of those transcripts, The Laramie Project, is one of the most frequently performed plays in America, and for good reason. The messages surrounding the brutal, anti-gay hate crime still resonate with audiences today.

To appreciate the theatrical production, one must never lose sight of the crime. On the night of October 6, 1998, Matthew Wayne Shepard, a gay college student at the University of Wyoming, was approached by two men at the Fireside Lounge in Laramie, Wyoming. All three men were in their early 20s and Aaron McKinney and Russell Henderson offered to give Shepard a ride home. They subsequently drove to a remote rural area and proceeded to rob, pistol-whip, and torture Shepard, tying him to a buck fence and leaving him to die. Reports described how Shepard was beaten so brutally that his face was completely covered in blood, except where it had been partially cleansed by his tears. Shepard was pronounced dead six days later on October 12, 1998. He was 21 years old.

After Shepard's murder, Artistic Director Moisés Kaufman and members of the Tectonic Theater Project in New York City traveled to Laramie, Wyoming, to interview residents about how the attack on Shepard had affected the town. The resulting play tells the stories of real people who lived at the epicenter of one of the nation's most heinous anti-gay hate crimes. The Purdue Fort Wayne Department of Theatre will open their production of The Laramie Project in Williams Theatre on Nov 12, 2021.

Director John O'Connell, dean of the College of Visual and Performing Arts, has cast twelve actors to take on the roles of 63 different townspeople and members of the Tectonic Theatre Project, who authored the script. O'Connell directed the production in 2004 and still finds the subject matter relevant today. "Even though more than 20 years have passed, during rehearsal it's been important for us to remember that we're talking about a real person, a real crime, a real story, and not just a play that someone wrote" explained O'Connell. "This is a docu-drama about a real event."

O'Connell has worked with the actors to learn a different style of theatre than they have been used to performing. While most of the characters are narrating a story, the actors had to learn to immerse themselves in the narrative as opposed to remaining as neutral narrators. The challenge for actors has been to be in the moment and to express their memories of the events as a narrative.

The crime happened in 1998, so why should it still resonate with audiences today? "The way in which we are ending the show reminds audiences that these type of hate crimes are still happening today," said O'Connell. "We haven't stopped hurting people who are different. Gay rights may move forward. LGBTQ hate remains."

Purchase Tickets Online: www.pfw.edu/tickets

Purchase Tickets by Phone or in Person: 260-481-6555
Monday - Friday, 12:30 - 6:30 p.m.
Located in the Rhinehart Music Center, Room 106

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