The Laramie Project

On 8/22, I received an e-mail from the UU church I stopped attending 2 years ago (another story for another time) regarding a production of "The Laramie Project" at the local University. As I've been looking into injecting myself back into the things I have a vague recollection of enjoying, I decided to attend.

I was aware of the story behind the story (the tragic murder of Matthew Shepard), but not really familiar with the make-up of the production.

The rendition I saw was simple in design - part of the audience (myself included) was seated on the stage and there were only chairs and simple costume pieces used by the ensemble of 7 to portray many more. I'd give all of the male actors A plusses, but the females only C's. Each of the men was able to portray their various roles quite well and would have easily made their points as each character without any of the simple costume pieces. The women, however, varied in only tiny degrees from persona to persona and one often had to verify the voice with the hat, scarf, or apron that was used to indicate it.

All in all, it was a moving experience. I was touched enough by the story that the following exchange in the lobby made me sad for all the jaded teens in the world:

hipster teen wanna-be #1: Did you get all misty-eyed?
hipster teen wanna-be #2: No, I've seen it before.