The Laramie Project

In October 1998, a twenty-one-year-old student at the University of Wyoming was kidnapped, severely beaten, and left tied to a fence in the middle of the prairie outside Laramie, Wyoming. His bloody, bruised, and battered body was not discovered until the next day, and he died several days later in an area hospital. His name was Matthew Shepard. He was the victim of this hate crime because he was gay. Over the next year, Moisés Kaufman and a team of writers and actors from Tectonic Theater Project took six trips to Laramie. They conducted over 200 interviews with citizens of the town. Some people interviewed were intimately connected to the tragedy, others were not. These interviews were transformed into The Laramie Project, a theatrical examination of the immediate reactions of Matthew Shepard’s community to the murder and to the underlying bigotry and hatred that enabled it. The Laramie Project remains one of the most frequently performed plays in America and has since been seen by over 30 million people around the world. Salem State's production is directed by William Cunningham. This production is co-sponsored by the Salem State University Alliance. Our media sponsor is The Rainbow Times. For access and accommodation information, visit our page on access or email access@salemstate.edu. This production is intended for mature audiences. Content warning: Homophobia, reference to murder, assault and physical violence, coarse language, and adult situations.