School District Postpones High School Production of THE LARAMIE PROJECT Hours Before Opening

According to 12 News in Phoenix, Arizona, Cesar Chavez High School's production of "The Laramie Project" was put on pause by Phoenix Union High School District.

Phoenix Union District High School said that the production was paused to allow for "additional time to better prepare [their] audience and the public for the seriousness of the play’s content."

The Laramie Project, the 2000 play written by Moises Kaufman and members of the Tectonic Theatre Project, depicts the town of Laramie, Wyoming's reaction to the 1998 murder of gay University of Wyoming student Matthew Shepard.

The district issued a statement regarding the cancelation: "We will work closely with our theatre department to make necessary adjustments and ensure transparency with all families about the explored themes. Additionally, we will provide parents and guardians with a detailed description of the sensitive content and topics covered in the play so that parents and guardians can decide whether they would like their student(s) to attend." 

Students, who had been rehearsing for the show for three months, and their parents were blindsided by the decision.

"We thought that [PUHSD] was a school district that let students have a safe space to [speak] about hard topics that The Laramie Project presents. We have been proven wrong," a student associated with the production told 12 News.

The CCHS drama club Instagram account posted a photo of production headshots in an empty auditorium lobby, with the words, "This is what censorship looks like."

"They had the play ahead of time, they had all the material, they knew what it was about,"  parent Celeste O'Reilly said. "Why is this now an issue when these kids have been working on this for three months?"

This week, a school district in California canceled a production of Bert V. Royal's Dog Sees God, based on the Peanuts cartoons, citing "caution and concern," for attending students whose parents were not aware of the content. Students and parents with the production also raised concerns about censorship. The decision was reversed, but the district will limit admission to those 16 and up. Performances have not yet been rescheduled.

The Phoenix Union High School District says they will keep parents and students updated on when they will be able to continue the production.

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