The Laramie Project
"In October 1998 Matthew Shepard was kidnapped, severely beaten and left to die, tied to a fence on the outskirts of Laramie, Wyoming. Five weeks later, Moisés Kaufman and fellow members of the Tectonic Theater Project went to Laramie, and over the course of the next year, conducted more than 200 interviews with people of the town. From these interviews they wrote the play The Laramie Project, a chronicle of the life of the town of Laramie in the year after the murder." (http://www.laramieproject.org/)
Resources
A death in Laramie, reimagined as drama.(Tectonic Theater Project, Denver Center Theater Company produce "The Laramie Project," Denver Center for the Performing Arts)(Living Arts Pages) The New York Times, Feb 27, 2000, p.AR10(N) pAR10(L) Author: Janofsky, Michael
"Life in the memory of one who no longer lives": The Laramie Project and the politics of performance.(Critical essay) ANQ, Spring, 2010, Vol.23(2), p.86-95 [Peer Reviewed Journal] Author: Lippert, Leopold
Memory and Matthew Shepard: opposing expressions of public memory in television movies Journal of Communication Inquiry, July, 2007, Vol.31(3), p.222(17) [Peer Reviewed Journal] Author: Lynch, John
The Production
Moises Kaufman and the Tectonic Theater Company
- Why isn’t The Laramie Project presented as a documentary?
- Does fictionalizing parts of a true story aid or hinder our understanding of the story?
- Is it possible to portray a whole town as a character in a story? Does the purpose of the play undermine its success?
- What other works of theatre are structured like The Laramie Project?
- What are the benefits, and drawbacks, to this form of presentational theatre?
- Will an audience accept a small number of actors playing many parts, or should each role in Laramie be played by a single individual? How would these 2 styles of production affect the audience?
Source http://www.lagcc.cuny.edu/laramie/kaufman.htm
Oral Histories
The oral histories linked below were produced for the Wyoming State Archives.
Matthew Shepard
Keywords
Consider these keywords when searching for more information:
Laramie Project
Moises Kaufman
Matthew Shepard
Aaron James McKinney
Russell A. Henderson
Tectonic Theater
Collective memory
Homosexuality
Homophobia
Hate Crime
Victims
Intolerance
Tolerance
Bullying
Matthew Shepard Foundation
Stereotypes
Gay Rights
Martyr
Acceptance
Framing
Perspective matters.
How does the viewpoint from which the story is shared impact your thoughts about the town, its people and the events that occured?
How did the media and others frame the event? Was it objective or subjective? How is the framing of an event important?
People view life through the lens of their religious beliefs. How did religious beliefs influence reactions to the community violence that occured?
It is often said that out of tragedy hope is born. Do you agree or disagree?
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