PUEBLO — A Pueblo theater company is working to create conversations this Pride Month through the performance of a play detailing the 1998 murder of a gay man in Wyoming.
The Laramie Project is a documentary-style play written by the Tectonic Theater Project. The production explores the community's response to the murder of Matthew Shepard in Laramie, Wyoming. Shepard was a gay man and a college student at the University of Wyoming. Two men were convicted of brutally beating Shepard and leaving him tied to a fence to die in October 1998.
Shepard's murder was widely considered to be a hate crime, while other claims characterize the murder as drug-related.
The play reenacts more than 60 different interviews conducted with Laramie residents, who talk about the impact the murder had on the town. The characters represent a diverse group of people with differing views on gay rights, including a Baptist minister, police officers, a doctor, a bartender, and college students.
"I think that these conversations are really important, especially as we're looking at some hate crimes against trans people," said Andrea Garrett, managing director of Steel City Theatre Company.
Garrett said the theater company has received several negative comments on social media posts promoting the production.
"Not a lot of the commenters have been local to Pueblo," said Garrett. "Most of it has just been some comments about 'that lifestyle is wrong. I don't appreciate this lifestyle,' but actually not talking about the show specifically."
She said the backlash serves as an important reminder of the obstacles the LGBTQ+ community still faces in today's world.
Several cast members said the overall purpose of the play is to share the widespread impact of Shepard's murder.
"I think the message here is not only presenting Matthew Shepard's story, but also everyone else's story around it," said Zachary Price, a cast member in the play.
"I just feel it's very, very important to do this now to show people like, 'Hey, this is what's going on. This is still an issue, and this is still something we need to worry about,'" said cast member Macie Gross.
The Laramie Project runs June 12 to 21 at the Steel City Theatre Company on North Main Street in downtown Pueblo.
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