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 The Laramie Project by Moisés Kaufman and members of the US-based Tectonic Theater Project was derived from media reports about Matthew Shepard’s murder in 1998, which shocked the world with its brutality and homophobia. Kaufman and co. also compiled journal entries from theatre company members and over 200 interviews done by the company with Laramie residents over a year.
The script captures the townspeople’s diverse reactions to the murder in a manner described by New York Times writer, Michael Janofsky, as “theatrical journalism”.
Janofsky wrote: “Unlike hit-and-run television and many print reporters, they had the time to win trust and, in the end, become part of the story they tell.”
The upcoming local performance of The Laramie Project, directed by Lucas Stibbard, is a co-production of Springboard Theatre Company and The Forward Movement. Producer Anthony Standish, from The Forward Movement, says he is keen to share the play with a broad audience at the Brisbane Powerhouse.
“Springboard did the play last year for high schools at Metro Arts, but it wasn’t open to the public,” he says. “It’s something that the general public needs to see. It’s a story that needs to be told.”
Co-producer and actor, Leesa Connelly, also from The Forward Movement, says she first read the script after last year’s Springboard Theatre Company performance. “The fact that it’s a true story is really gripping,” she explains, and this motivated her to be part of the new independent production of the play.
Connelly sees the story as an important reminder that incidents like Shepard’s murder do continue to happen. Standish emphasises that homophobic violence occurs everywhere, and while the play is based on a specific event in the US, it contains a universal message about the ultimate effects of prejudice and intolerance.
The Powerhouse performances will use Kaufman’s original script as well as its “raw” stage aesthetic. “The focus is more on the text, so it has minimal set design and lighting,” Standish says. “It’s the actors that control and drive the whole show.”
Connelly says the cast of eight locals contains a mix of emerging actors along with more experienced and well-known faces in the Brisbane theatre scene, such as Daniel Murphy, Christopher Sommers and Nikki-J Witt. “It’s an ensemble piece,” she adds, “so there’s not one star of the show.”
The actors will deliver a series of monologues by more than 60 characters. They will rely overwhelmingly on body expression, rather than costuming, to assume the remarkable variety of roles, Connelly explains. Two of the many characters she plays include Shepard’s best friend and a Muslim Bangladeshi woman residing in Laramie, Wyoming, where Shepard lived.
While the main narrative is very serious, Connelly says the script also contains some humour to balance the gravity of the subject matter. She believes the play’s strength is in its ability to directly address the audience and take in so many points of view.
“What sets it apart is that it’s almost verbatim theatre,” Connelly says. “It’s a lot more accessible to the audience.”
One significant part of the play comes when the character of Shepard’s father talks about his opposition to the death penalty and his hope for healing, Connelly reveals. “The main thing that comes out of the play is hope.”
The Laramie Project opens at the Brisbane Powerhouse Visy Theatre on Tuesday 23 October and continues until Saturday 3 November.
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Aftermath of a murder
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