Sennett: ‘The Laramie Project,’ they told it ‘correct’

It was the kind of town where everyone knew everyone, except for perhaps themselves. The stage was never motionless and the audience was in a constant state of hypnosis during the opening night of The University of Toledo’s production of “The Laramie Project.” The second play in the Department of Theatre and Film’s 2015-2016 season was a contemporary piece.

“The Laramie Project” by Moisés Kaufman is more than a play: it is an investigation and an echo of hope. This true story takes place after Matthew Shepard, a gay student from the University of Wyoming, was tied to a fence and beaten to death in the small town of Laramie. A theatre company from New York investigates this crime with a series of long interviews. Various members of the town express their opinion of the crime over the course of one year. As the citizens learn more about the death of Shepard, they learn more about themselves and the neighbors they thought they knew. The play is based on the interviews from real people involved in the tragedy. This unique investigation illustrates an entire town with a cast of eight people.

This is an important play, and has been a popular piece to perform on college campuses since it was written in 2000. The voices of the people of Laramie will be echoed at the Center for Performing Arts Theater on December 4-6.

Matthew Shepard’s story must not be about violence or hate, but about love and redemption. Not only is it important for the play to be written with this in mind, but the “correctness” of the performance is equally important. This production captured the essence of every emotion possible, without being too cheesy or melodramatic. I strongly urge my fellow students to attend this weekend. It is a unique piece for the University, and way above par. They “told it correct.”

The way the ensemble worked together was extremely unique. Each UT actor, like the original Tectonic Theater Project cast, had roles portraying various members of the town of Laramie. No one character dominated over the others. In this way, there was no sense of superiority — only equality. It also illustrated the vast amount of personas any one “type” of person can have. I truly believed every character each actor portrayed. Some actors portray multiple parts, yet I was never confused. The directing team of Pete Cross and Mark Leasor took a diverse group of actors and sculpted an ensemble that seemed to work in unison. The ages of the performers varied tremendously, and the acting styles did as well. The creative blocking, or each character’s awareness of their surroundings, created a fluid stage where each member of the team contributed equally to the whole.

This is not a play with a protagonist. Arguably, the victim, Matthew Shepard, is the main character of the story and he’s not even in it. Shepard is brought back to life without any physical embodiment, through the ensemble. The diverse group of performers worked extremely well together.

The scenery was simple, as it usually is in this performance space. It did not overshadow the actors, yet it was a character of its own. Several chairs and tables were scattered across the stage as props for the actors to use for story purposes. I loved the layout, but the stage itself was a little intrusive to the audience. I noticed more than one person trip on the corners of the stage. That aside, the biggest statement was a horizontal strip of blue cloth hanging high above the performers and just below the lighting catwalk. This blue strip was representative of the sky, and eventually placed the audience in the subjective point of view of what may have been Matthew Shepard’s final vision on Earth. The scenery made a powerful statement, while maintaining simplicity and not interfering with the most important thing: the performances

This unique show, built from real interviews, invited a diverse ensemble and creative scenery to collaborate effectively. This is a powerful and emotional show. It is pure theatre, with a message and room for interpretation. We need more shows like this one at UT.

Evan Sennett is a first-year majoring in film studies, and he is also an IC cartoonist.