2008 Woodie Awards
Controversial production in the works at Kirkwood
Emily Pickart, Kim Van Winkle and Jackie Edgerly
Issue date: 3/23/06 Section: A&E
- Page 1 of 1
This April "Laramie Project" by Moisés Kaufman will come to Kirkwood Community College with a portrayal of life in Laramie, Wyo. shortly after the death of a gay college student. Nationally the story has gained attention because of the controversy that surrounds the topic. There tends to be a misconception that "Laramie Project" is a reenactment of the incident that happened in 1998.
Lauren Lee, who plays Amanda Gronich, said, "It's a story about the town of Laramie and how it affected the residents."
Shortly after the death of Matthew Shephard, actors from the Tectonic Theater Company in New York conducted interviews with citizens of Laramie. The actors recorded the interviews and took the information word for word. "Laramie Project" is a production that is constructed of those moments and interviews.
In the play there are approximately 50 characters but only eight actors. Each act includes all of the actors and the audience gets to see the actors change characters. Rick Anderson, the director of theater at Kirkwood said that 37 Kirkwood students tried out but he is only using eight of the actors.
Anderson said that he didn't choose "Laramie Project" because of the controversy. "I chose it for the students. It breaks from the traditional style of theater and is a nice production for the students to be involved in."
Kirkwood's Unity Group, which promotes advocacy, education and tolerance of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community at school, would like to be a part of the production.
Patty Wall, a member of the Unity group, said, "I'm really excited about the play. It'll be a really moving experience whether we protest or not."
One of the Unity Group's goals is to help the community realize that people get harassed and bullied a lot at school. Anderson agreed and said that the play isn't just about Laramie, it is about every town.
Anderson concluded that "Laramie Project" makes the audience ask themselves important questions about how they feel and that no matter what those feelings are, people tend to hang on to what they believe.
Lauren Lee, who plays Amanda Gronich, said, "It's a story about the town of Laramie and how it affected the residents."
Shortly after the death of Matthew Shephard, actors from the Tectonic Theater Company in New York conducted interviews with citizens of Laramie. The actors recorded the interviews and took the information word for word. "Laramie Project" is a production that is constructed of those moments and interviews.
In the play there are approximately 50 characters but only eight actors. Each act includes all of the actors and the audience gets to see the actors change characters. Rick Anderson, the director of theater at Kirkwood said that 37 Kirkwood students tried out but he is only using eight of the actors.
Anderson said that he didn't choose "Laramie Project" because of the controversy. "I chose it for the students. It breaks from the traditional style of theater and is a nice production for the students to be involved in."
Kirkwood's Unity Group, which promotes advocacy, education and tolerance of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community at school, would like to be a part of the production.
Patty Wall, a member of the Unity group, said, "I'm really excited about the play. It'll be a really moving experience whether we protest or not."
One of the Unity Group's goals is to help the community realize that people get harassed and bullied a lot at school. Anderson agreed and said that the play isn't just about Laramie, it is about every town.
Anderson concluded that "Laramie Project" makes the audience ask themselves important questions about how they feel and that no matter what those feelings are, people tend to hang on to what they believe.