THEATRE

The creators of the highly acclaimed play The Laramie Project, which since 2000 has been one of the most performed plays in America, will premiere a compelling and groundbreaking epilogue to the original piece. The Laramie Project-Ten Years Later will be presented publicly for the first time in a reader’s theater format at one hundred theaters across the country on October 12, 2009. One of only two public high school theater departments selected in the country, Westford Academy Theater Arts (WATA) will be among those companies who partner with Moises Kauffman and the Tectonic Theater Company in this historic event. The Theater Collaborative of Westford, a newly formed not-for-profit theater organization, will sponsor and produce the event in the Westford Academy Performing Arts Center. Artistic Director Michael Towers will direct a cast of twelve Westford Academy Alumni whose range of WA attendance spans a twenty five year period. Joining the ensemble cast are special guests Janet Keirstead (WA English Department) and Larry Sousa (WATA Guest Director.) The epilogue focuses on the long term effect of the murder of Matthew Shepard on the town of Laramie, Wyoming. The Tectonic Theater Company’s unique play-building process parallels the scientific method in which a problem is identified, data is collected, and a hypothesis is formed based on findings. As in the original production of The Laramie Project, the Tectonic Theater Company embedded themselves in Laramie and, through a course of intense observation and interviews, yielded its epilogue. The characters and the names cited in the play are factual. The dialogue is their own, as recorded by company members. With an emphasis on its moral, social and political implications and in an effort to reinforce a national awareness of community, a pre and post show will be broadcast to all participating productions live from Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall. The pre-show portion will include an introduction from the production’s writers as well as other special guests including Glenn Close and Judy Shepard. The post show will consist of a Q & A session in which audience members from participating theaters can text or twitter questions to be answered live. In addition to the live broadcast, the Tectonic Theater Project is launching an online environment where production contributors and audience members can network and share experiences. The website for this is www.laramieproject.org.