Mikaela Salgado and Darrien Aguirre in ‘The Laramie Project.” (Photo by Alistair Hunter)

Why tell a story of a Downey High School drama production that has come and gone?

Because we celebrate the achievements of our students, teachers, and the voices of art in the community.

Because it’s not unlike telling the stories of sports games, or community events that have come and gone.

Because as Shakespeare said, “The play’s the thing.” The literature of theatre speaks to our times and our humanity.

Long after our prehistoric ancestors told stories around their campfire and drew stories on the walls of caves, the Greeks gave us Drama. They held a mirror up to society and the Greek Chorus commented directly to the audience.

Chris Nelson’s DHS Drama Department is an ambitious one. In November they presented “The Laramie Project” (2000).

In the audience at the performance I attended was DUSD Board President Nancy Swenson, and former DSD President and City Council Member Donald LaPlante, along with Jennifer LaMar, Columbus High School Visual Arts Teacher.

The set is the DHS Little Theatre itself. Perhaps it’s significant that on the auditorium walls were posted the Six Pillars of Character: Trustworthiness; Respect; Responsibility; Fairness; Caring; and Citizenship.

For the setting, LaMar has painted a beautiful mural spanning the stage that captures the open land and sky of Wyoming, including the sign “Laramie, Wyoming, Population 26687.”

A fence. Minimal set pieces and costumes. A cast of 20 actors are introduced as residents of Laramie and they tell us in their own words the story that unfolds.

Act One: Introduces the audience to Laramie’s social climate.

Act Two: Focuses on the murder and trial.

Act Three: Explores the aftermath of the events

This is not an easy play. It is a challenge for these young actors to have the skills and empathy to put themselves in the shoes of these wildly divergent characters and opinions. And it takes guts. From the beginning we can see they are going to give it their best. In the end, the audience gives them a standing ovation.

In particular, Ulysses Ayala, John Ybarra, Celise Batista, Charisse Leslie-Barrara, Cadence Bramlett, Giselle Bispago, Ivana Collozo, Natalia Fabian, Aydin Ramirez, Genisis Diaz, and Abby Barajas captured their characters extremely well.

The play was developed by Director Moises Kauffman, and the Tectonic Theatre Company, between 1998 and 1999. It presents the reaction of the community of Laramie, Wyoming to the 1998 murder of Mathew Shepard, a 21-year-old openly gay University of Wyoming student.

This is not a gay play. It’s more like Thornton Wilder’s “Our Town” (1938) set in Laramie in 1998 at the moment of a horrific act.

Mathew was lured from a bar, savagely beaten, robbed, tortured, set on fire while tied to a fence, and left alone on an extremely cold night. He died after being discovered the next day.

Matthew’s murder sparked a nation-wide conversation and debate about homophobia, gay rights, and hate crime legislation. In Laramie, it was also a media circus. This was a community in crisis.

“The Laramie Project” is an example of verbatim theatre and consists of the precise words spoken by individuals interviewed and recorded by the theatre company about the event between 1998 and 1999.

It is a chronological account of the events surrounding Shepard's murder, from the interviews after his death to the trials of his accused killers. The play explores the community's response to the murder, including the anger, bewilderment, and sorrow they felt. It also shows how the human spirit can triumph over bigotry and violence.

It is reported that the economy of the town is divided between those with well paying jobs at the University, and those with minimum wage jobs.

Aaron McKinney (Ulysses Ayala) is one of Mathew’s murderers. He admits he killed Matthew with Russell Henderson because Matthew allegedly tried to hit on him. He harbors intense feelings of homophobia. He’s a new father and has drug issues.

The other murderer is 19-year-old Russell Henderson (Ayden Ramirez), who is guilty of participating in Matthew’s murder, driving the truck in which Aaron McKinney beat Matthew and then tying him to the fence to die.

Aaron and Russell become a flashpoint for the town’s conversation surrounding violence, justice, punishment, and homophobia as the town debates whether they deserve the death penalty.

The Church of Latter Day Saints excommunicates Russell.

Dennis Shepard is Mathew’s father. The family rejects the death penalty as the best way to honor Matthew’s memory and ensure that the Laramie community can heal.

At one point he says, “Change is not an easy thing, and I don’t think people were up to it here… it’s been a year since Matthew died, and they haven’t passed anything at a state level, … nobody anywhere, has passed any kind of laws, anti-discrimination laws or hate crime legislation… What’s come out of it…that’s concrete or lasting?”

It took from 1998 to 2009 to pass the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Federal Hate Crimes Prevention Act. In 2023 the FBI continued to report an increase in hate crimes.

A hate crime involves violence and is motivated by prejudice on the basis of ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, or similar grounds.

Aaron and Russell are sentenced to two consecutive life sentences for their crimes, and the play prominently discusses their trial.

“The Laramie Project” is one of the most frequently performed plays in America. The play has been performed in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand. It has been translated into 30 languages.

Stories like “The Laramie Project” continue to be relevant. They force us to confront our biases and consider the impact of hate crimes on a community. They also may also act as a catalyst for empathy and social change.

Revisiting Downey High’s production of ‘The Laramie Project’