On Thursday, April 14 and Friday, April 15, the Saint Louis University Rainbow Alliance presented “The Laramie Project,” a story following the aftermath of the death of a gay youth in a small Wyoming town.

In 1998, University of Wyoming student, Matthew Shepard, was viciously murdered in a hate crime rooted in extreme homophobia.
Based on hundreds of interviews, the eight-person cast successfully portrayed a broken and conflicted town on the small stage of the Black Box Theatre, beautifully bringing to life the heartbreaking tragedy.The first shining point of the play was the utilization of the stage.

The 60-seat theater hardly seemed to have room for a proper performance upon first glance.
Once the show began, though, it was more than apparent that every inch of the stage would be used to the actors’ advantage, at no point proving to be too crowded or cramped.

The way the actors moved about the stage was riveting, probably the most captivating aspect of the play, even trumping the story itself.  It was amazing to see the actors flawlessly move into their spots from different directions, knowing precisely where to stand to make the most aesthetically interesting arrangement without the confusion that can so easily happen in such a small outlet.

As a cast of eight playing more than 60 different characters, the actors themselves cannot be overlooked as vital contributors to the success of the play.

Each actor effortlessly morphed into the next accents, costumes and personas, easily changing as if it was the most natural thing in the world.
From a non-theatrical stance, the actors’ complete knowledge of each role they were asked to undertake was the most impressive part of this play.

There was no hesitation as to which character the actor was expected to play next, and, inasmuch, no question as to the work and hardship that surely went into the creation of the play.

A play that is able to elicit emotion from the audience is always a sure sign of success.

In the portrayal of the candlelight vigil following Shepard’s attack, the lights went low, actors entered the stage with a small light, and a slow and sweet Gospel song played in the background.

If nothing else struck the audience, this was the moment that truly embodied the message of the play.

If there were anything to criticize about the play, it would have nothing at all to do with the particular SLU production. The play was written in three acts, separated by brief intermissions. While I am confident it was written that way for better organization and clarification purposes, it occasionally had the tendency to slow the action of the play down, possibly losing audience members on the way.

It could hardly be said that there were any definitive flaws of the production, and it was difficult, regardless of the audience’s personal beliefs to not be intrigued by the message and production of the play.

The controversial “The Laramie Project” successfully executed its two-night run and undeniably gave its audience something to think about.