Wasatch Theatre Company Opens 25th Season With THE LARAMIE CYCLE

Wasatch Theatre Company kicks off its 25th season with THE LARAMIE CYCLE, a combination of two plays titled THE LARAMIE PROJECT and THE LARAMIE PROJECT: TEN YEARS LATER. Both plays chronicle the assault and murder of Matthew Shepherd in 1998. The Tectonic Theatre Project visited the town of Laramie where the murder took place to interview townsfolk immediately after the incident and again in 2008. The reactions are documented in both plays.

THE LARAMIE PROJECT uses actual transcripts to describe how a town comes to terms with the murder of Matthew Shepherd and how they negotiate their petrceptions of the town with this barbaric act. THE LARAMIE PROJECT: TEN YEARS LATER tackles the theme of forgetfulness and how a community writes and rewrites history as time moves on. This is the first time in Utah history that the two plays, written ten years apart, have been performed in one cycle.

The cycle opens with THE LARAMIE PROJECT, running October 6th thru October 9th for four performances only. October 6th is the 24th anniversary of the beating of Matthew Shepherd. The following weekend, THE LARAMIE PROJECT: TEN YEARS LATER runs October 13th thru October 15th for a total of four performances with the same cast. Tickets are available through ArtTix for one performance only at $25.00 or for both performances at $30. Wasatch Theatre Company is hoping audience members experience the full cycle of both plays.

Wasatch Theatre Company chose to open its 25th season with THE LARAMIE CYCLE because of recent physical, emotional, and social attacks on the LGBTQIA+ community. Since the allowance of gay marriage by the US Supreme Court, some individuals consider us past some of the revelations from THE LARAMIE CYCLE. However, in Sandy, Utah, two young adults were recently threatened and attacked because of their sexual orientation. Libraries and school districts across the country are banning books deemed inappropriate, oftentimes with LGBTQIA+ themes. Transgender youth and their needs continue to be misunderstood in schools. Transgender individuals are a real target of hate crimes across the nation, and this statistic is on the rise.

Martin, Director of THE LARAMIE CYCLE and Executive Director of Wasatch Theatre Company, said:

We have chosen to cast THE LARAMIE CYCLE with a diverse cast including members of the LGBTQIA+ community and Actors of Color. Some of the cast members were not even born when Matthew Shepherd was murdered. We as a diverse community must keep the issues that surfaced in 1998 at the forefront as our nation undergoes its own reckoning with rising hate crimes. We must ensure that our education systems focus on LGBTQIA+ history and issues, including relevant and appropriate literature, to help young people recognize their role in affirming the LGBTQIA+ community. This Cycle is a very important production at this particular time in history.

Masks are recommended but not required.

Wasatch Theatre Company is a local theatre organization that has been in operation since 1997. The group has performed at venues such as delis and coffee shops before spending the ten years at The Rose Wagner Performing Arts Building in downtown Salt Lake. WTC is now the resident theatre company of The Gateway and is housed at their performing arts space The Box. WTC is excited to be back performing with Salt Lake County!

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