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Department of Theatre and Dance

Laramie Project Epilogue to be Staged at UW Oct. 12

Sept. 30, 2009 -- The University of Wyoming will join more than 150 theaters in all 50 states and worldwide in presenting "The Laramie Project: 10 Years Later: An Epilogue," Monday, Oct. 12, at 7:30 p.m. in the UW College of Arts and Sciences auditorium.

The program is free and open to the public.

"The Laramie Project: 10 Years Later: An Epilogue" is a follow-up to the Tectonic Theater Project's highly acclaimed and widely produced play, "The Laramie Project," which chronicled the aftermath of UW student Matthew Shepard's murder in Laramie.

Written by Tectonic Theater Project members Moises Kaufman, Leigh Fondakowski, Greg Pierotti, Andy Paris and Stephen Belber, the epilogue focuses on the Shepard murder's long-term effects on the Laramie community.

The play explores how the town has changed and whether or how the murder continues to affect in the community. It features interviews with Shepard's mother, Judy Shepard, and with both of his murderers, Aaron McKinney and Russell Henderson, who both are serving life sentences.

The writers also conducted many follow-up interviews with Laramie residents featured in the original piece.

A talk-back session follows the performance, featuring Jeff Lockwood, UW philosophy professor; Kate Welsh, Shepard Symposium on Social Justice chairwoman and UW elementary and early childhood associate professor; UW student Keith Reynolds; Dave O'Malley, retired Laramie chief of police; State Senator and UW Women's Studies Associate Professor Cathy Connolly; Dale Stalder, Laramie chief of police; John Dorst, UW American studies professor; and Laramie resident Jonas Slonaker.

Creating the epilogue also gave the production's writers the opportunity to talk to McKinney about his crime, says Pierotti, who interviewed McKinney.

"We were also able to speak with Matthew's mother, Judy, whose striking transformation from privately grieving mother to civil rights activist has captured the nation's attention," Paris adds.

For more information about the local production of "The Laramie Project: 10 Years Later: An Epilogue," contact Kathy Kirkaldie, Fine Arts programs coordinator at (307) 766-2160 or e-mail kirisk@uwyo.edu.

Posted on Friday, October 09, 2009

 

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