Actors Cabaret of Eugene will present “The Laramie Project,” a play portraying the aftermath of the murder of an openly gay man, Friday and Saturday at Lane Community College Theater.
The cast of 50 will represent the town of Laramie, Wyo., and depict in monologue its reaction to the 1998 murder of 21-year-old Matthew Shepard. Shepard was violently beaten, tied to a fence and left to die because he was gay.
Moises Kaufman and members of the TeTectonic Theater Project originally wrote the script for eight actors who take on several different personas, but director Joe Zingo said an unusually large cast gave more Eugene thespians a chance to perform. Cast member Carol Horne said that because each actor focuses on one part, they can build stronger characters.
“Everyone sinks their teeth into one color of the tapestry,” Horne said.
“The Laramie Project” resulted from more than 200 interviews that Kaufman and TeTectonic Theater members conducted with the town of Laramie after Shepard, as Zingo puts it, was “crucified on a fence.” The play begins with solo monologues and gradually adds more group scenes, but actors never interact with each other.
Performers will give different perspectives of those who were involved with or affected by the crime. This includes the investigators, townspeople, the two young men accused of the murder and their girlfriends, and Shepard’s teachers and parents.
Horne portrays lesbian University of Wyoming Professor Catherine Connelly, who shares her feelings about the “homophobic” town of Laramie, her isolation as the only “out” homosexual on the university staff, and her fears following the crime. Horne said Shepard’s murder gave Connelly a frightening reality check.
“She realizes that she’s living in the world,” Horne said.
Powerful scenes include monologues from the man who found Shepard’s body and an uninvited priest at Shepard’s funeral who claims that the victim has gone to hell, Horne said, adding the show cleverly stages scenes without actor-to-actor interaction. For example, during a scene depicting the trial, a pool of light shines on Horne, who introduces the judge’s statements. The light illuminates the judge as he reads and returns to Horne for her reaction. She never makes eye contact with the judge.
Cast member Mark VanBeever, who introduces and ties together scenes as the narrator, said “The Laramie Project” will be performed without a set in order to direct focus toward the story. Actors provide their own costumes to add a personal touch.
VanBeever said he felt the show sends a positive, hopeful message.
“It shows that so much good can come out of so much evil,” he said. “There is so much wonderful healing that came out of what happened. Right now, we can respect and tolerate homosexuals, but acceptance is the next step. Hopefully, people can begin to accept them after seeing the show.”
Lane Community College Theater is located at 4000 E. 30th Ave. Tickets are available at the theater’s box office, located at 996 Willamette St., online at http://www.actorscabaret.org, or by calling 683-4368. Ticket prices are $12 for general admission and $10 for students and seniors. The show starts at 8 p.m. and runs two nights.