When the student actors of Durango High School Troupe 1096 take the stage next week to perform “The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later,” they’ll not only be performing their roles, they’ll be portraying real people and using their actual words.
The show and its predecessor, “The Laramie Project,” were created by Moisés Kauffman and members of the Tectonic Theater Project in New York, with the goal to “explore the reaction and impacts of Matthew Shepard’s murder on the residents of Laramie, Wyoming,” according to The Matthew Shepard Foundation.
If you go
WHAT: Durango High School Troupe 1096 presents, “The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later”
WHEN: 7 p.m. Feb. 27, 28 and March 5-7
WHERE: Durango High School, 2390 Main Ave.
TICKETS: $15 per ticket, available online at https://troupe1096.weebly.com.
MORE INFORMATION: Visit https://troupe1096.weebly.com or email Benjamin Mattson at bmattson@durangoschools.org.
NOTE: This production includes strong language and mature themes.
On Oct. 7, 1998, Shepard, a 21-year-old gay student at the University of Wyoming, was brutally attacked and tied to a fence in a field outside Laramie and left to die. On Oct. 12, he died from his injuries in a hospital in Fort Collins.
Two men, Russell Henderson and Aaron McKinney, were convicted of Shepard’s murder.
Troupe 1096’s “The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later” is directed by Ben Mattson and Jenny Fitts Reynolds, and according to a news release from the Troupe, the production is a documentary-style play that revisits Laramie a decade “after a tragic hate crime which sparked national reflection on community, identity, and responsibility.”
The play was selected as an opportunity for the students to portray real people using their actual words, Fitts Reynolds said, adding that it also takes a much larger look at what happens when tragedy strikes – not just in Laramie, but anywhere.
“It goes beyond just acting and forces the kids to step into the shoes of someone else and find that empathy, even for the characters that may not have shown empathy themselves,” she said in an email. “This show is also a mirror for any community, not just Laramie. This could have happened and can happen anywhere, and it’s an excellent deep dive into how a society deals with a collective trauma and its aftermath.”
Mattson said the play is essentially a sequel to the first, and explores the residual effects of what can happen to a town and its residents.
“The focus of this second work is to explore the long-term effects of a town being under the national spotlight in 1998, being essentially labeled as a place of hate. How does a community protect themselves, how do they control their story over time, when is it healthy to let go, and when does letting go mean ignoring what happened?” he said. ”Students get to portray a variety of real people in the town of Laramie having honest reactions to these questions. Seeking the truth of each person, and legitimizing their various perspectives, is what makes this production so humanizing and healing.”
Fitts Reynolds and Mattson said taking on such a serious play is a heavy lift for the students – but it’s a production that has not only brought Troupe 1096 together as a team, it’s made the students grow as actors – and people.
“It’s tough for all of us to deal with such dark subject matter in what feels for many like dark times,” Fitts Reynolds said. ”But watching the kids dive in headfirst, do the research and do the hard work – it has been something special to watch. As a team, we’ve developed a very safe and bonded space in which to do the work. To add a layer, the kids all play multiple roles, so they often have to step into a different perspective and headspace within minutes. ... The students have really shown maturity, support and bravery as they’ve approached this difficult content.”
Playing real people and using their actual words can be a big responsibility, so Fitts Reynolds and Mattson wanted to ensure the students were given the proper tools.
“The material is approached with maturity, guidance and care,” according to the Troupe’s new release. “We have taken time to research and explore these historical events from a variety of perspectives, and to make sure that the students are aware that they are portraying real peoples’ truths. By approaching this material responsibly and with guidance, students model how young people can participate in difficult but meaningful conversations with integrity and respect.”
And because Shepard’s death happened well before any of the students were born, the directors found that his story wasn’t well known among the members of the Troupe, which is kind of the point of “Laramie Project” – what’s left as such a traumatic event as Shepard’s death begins to fade over time? When the newscasters have long packed up their gear and left town for the next big story and the town’s residents are left to pick up the pieces and try to move forward.
“As we delved into Matthew’s story, we did realize that the kids were not familiar with it,” Fitts Reynolds said. “In fact, that is a prominent part of the show itself – what happens 10 years after the event? When, why and how do the details and memories begin to fade and why is that allowed to happen?”
“I was a bit surprised that the students were unfamiliar with Matthew Shepard,” Mattson said. “On one hand, I felt worried that such a big event to me had no relevance anymore. On the other hand, I was relieved that such a big event had no relevance anymore. Perhaps we’ve grown past it? Or, perhaps, it’s faded in a way where we’re ignoring its importance? These are some of the themes that the show explores.”
The takeaway from “The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later,” Mattson and Fitts Reynolds said, is the idea that communities and people can rise above the tragedies and dark things that happen around them. There can be hope and unity.
“Ultimately we’d like to see people walk away with the idea that no matter the tragedy, the trauma, the hate, a community can always choose compassion and hope,” Fitts Reynolds said. “We want people to walk away talking and thinking about the content and the power a society can have when they come together. And we want people to truly hear and heed one another’s stories.”
“I’m hoping the audience comes away from this production asking themselves questions. How do ‘I’ react to the various views around me? How much listening do I do? How much ‘urban myth’ do I believe? How do I hold compassion and accountability in each hand? How am I more alike than different from everyone around me?” Mattson said.
A note for those planning to see the production: “The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later” contains strong language and mature themes.
katie@durangoherald.com
