James Caldwell High School Presents The Laramie Project

Greg Paradis wants to give people something to talk about.

The James Caldwell High School theatre teacher and theatre program director hopes his choice for the fall student production, The Laramie Project, will spark awareness and discussion among both the young actors and audiences alike. The play was inspired by the events following the brutal 1998 murder of gay college student Mathew Shephard, a hate crime that shook the town of Laramie, Wyoming to its core.

“I want to start a dialogue. I want everyone to go home talking about it,” said Paradis, who also serves as the theatre teacher and theatre program director for Grover Cleveland Middle School.

“The students had been asking to work on a drama for a long time, something gritty and heavier that they can really sink their teeth into.”

Paradis feels that The Laramie Projecthas provided the high school cast with a unique opportunity for “strong acting work and emotional explorations that they can really dive into.”

The New York-based Tectonic Theatre Project created the play in what Paradis calls “a collective exercise by the company.” The group traveled to Laramie shortly after Matthew’s death and spent two years interviewing community members, reviewing court testimonies and news clips, and condensing all the information and impressions they gathered into a three-act play, which premiered in early 2000.

“Everyone was involved in every aspect of creating the play,” Paradis said.

The play features eight actors, with each student playing many roles portraying a broad range of Laramie’s residents, including Matthew’s parents and friends, clergy members with different mindsets, the ER doctor who tried to save Matthew’s life, minority students who identified with Matthew for various reasons, and many others, as well as members of the Tectonic Theatre Project, who interviewed all these community members as part of their extensive research. Matthew Shephard does not appear as a character in the play, since the focus is on the aftermath of Matthew’s murder, the reactions it elicited, and how it impacted the conservative northwestern community.

“This community had to rise up from the ashes and define itself,” Paradis said. “The town of Laramie struggled with its collective identity. People asked, ‘Are we a place where hate crimes happen?’”

The questions and reflections posed by the play reach far beyond the borders of Laramie, however, as they address “serious issues that were relevant in 1998 and are still relevant today,” Paradis said. “I want the audience to leave the play starting a conversation. Why is it still relevant 20 years later? Why do we have to assert our right to exist as a minority? Why do gay community members feel the need to stay hidden? A lot has changed in the past 20 years, but surprisingly, not a lot has changed either.”

Even though The Laramie Projectrevolves around the hate crime committed against Matthew Shepard for his sexual orientation, Paradis agrees that the show can also resonate with anyone who has ever witnessed or experienced bullying or targeting for various reasons.

As the members of the Tectonic Theatre Project did 20 years ago, each student in the JCHS production conducted their own research on a particular aspect of “the world of the play,” Paradis said. Topics included the history and culture of Laramie, the history of the gay rights movement, the incidence of hate crimes, religious influences and perspectives, and other relevant topics.

The Laramie Project script does not follow a traditional linear plot. Instead, the play’s unconventional structure incorporates “moment work,” where individual moments of the interview process with the Laramie residents are isolated and built upon to create a narrative that captures the different voices of the town.

Even though they are following the original script, the JCHS students added some improvisational touches “to take ownership of it and make it their own,” Paradis said. “The students experienced a totally new way of approaching acting and the play, something they can apply to different aspects of life by keenly observing how others behave.”

Due to the show’s mature themes, content, and language, the recommended age for viewing the show is 13 and up. Paradis recommends parental discretion for anyone younger.

Show times for The Laramie Projectat James Caldwell High School will be on Friday, November 15, and Saturday, November 16, at 7:30 pm, and on Sunday, November 17, at 2 pm. Tickets are $5 each and will be available for purchase at the door. Please note that immediately following Friday’s performance, a member of the Tectonic Theatre Project will be present for a talkback with members of the audience.