The Laramie Project was written through a unique collaboration by Tectonic Theater Project. During the year-and-a-half development of the play, members of the company and I traveled to Laramie six times to conduct interviews with the people of the town. We transcribed and edited the interviews, then conducted several workshops in which the members of the company presented material and acted as dramaturgs in the creation of the play.
As the volume of material grew with each additional trip to Laramie, a small writers' group from within the company began to work closely with me to further organize and edit the material, conduct additional research in Laramie, and collaborate on the writing of the play. This group was led by Leigh Fondakowski as Head Writer, with Stephen Belber and Greg Pierotti as Associate Writers.
As we got closer to the play's first production in Denver, the actors, including Stephen Belber and Greg Pierotti, turned their focus to performance, while Leigh Fondakowski continued to work with me on drafts of the play, as did Stephen Wangh, who by then had joined us as an Associate Writer and "bench coach.”
Moisés Kaufman
DIRECTOR'S NOTE
When Jane first approached me about the project, it felt like the perfect moment to work on this piece. I recently purchased a copy of The Laramie Project, which joined my stack of “plays I should read” and I wrapped up a course with James Ijames at Villanova that taught skills needed to work on a collaborative theatre piece. Maybe it was fate (if you believe that kind of thing). But more importantly, it was a chance to bring a story to life that is still relevant today. Although there have been significant changes in law since the beating and death of Matthew in the 90s, there is still so much work to be done. Everyday LGBTQ+ rights are on the line as a political pawn to advance a politician's career and fuel the hatred that still exists in the hearts of people in our country. One thing that people aren’t talking about is the deaths of many trans and non-gender conforming individuals that go unrecognized each year. These deaths are a result of violence against the trans community and the names that we know are the one's that could be identified.
It is my hope that watching this piece opens the minds and hearts of people to keep fighting for equal rights by using their voice and their right to vote in each and every election and to stand up against hate whenever, wherever it exists.
I would like to thank Jane and Mark for trusting me to bring this piece to life on the stage and the entire cast for their hard work to bring the text to life.
Anthony
