The Laramie Project (AACTFest production)

By Moises Kaufman and the Tectonic Theatre Project

Directed by Tom Zuehlke

In October 1998 a twenty-one-year-old student at the University of Wyoming was kidnapped, severely beaten and left to die, tied to a fence in the middle of the prairie outside Laramie, Wyoming. His bloody, bruised and battered body was not discovered until the next day, and he died several days later in an area hospital. His name was Matthew Shepard, and he was the victim of this assault because he was gay.

Moisés Kaufman and members of the Tectonic Theater Project made six trips to Laramie over the course of a year and a half in the aftermath of the beating and during the trial of the two young men accused of killing Shepard. They conducted more than 200 interviews with the people of the town. Some people interviewed were directly connected to the case, and others were citizens of Laramie, and the breadth of their reactions to the crime is fascinating.

Kaufman and Tectonic Theater members have constructed a deeply moving theatrical experience from these interviews and their own experiences. THE LARAMIE PROJECT is a breathtaking theatrical collage that explores the depths to which humanity can sink, and the heights of compassion we are also capable of. This production is an excerpt prepared for the 2007 Wisconsin State Communty Theatre festival. A talkback will follow the performance.

Produced by Village Playhouse at Walker's Point Center for the Arts, 911 West National Avenue, Milwaukee

Performances: February 2, 2007

Performance Times: 8:00 PM

Ticket Prices: $12.00

Call 414-774-4768 for reservations or more information.

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