Last week, undergraduate students, under the direction of Candice Brown, presented the groundbreaking play, "The Laramie Project," by Moiss Kaufman and the Tectonic Theater Company. The play is specifically tied to Brandeis, as one of the associate writers, Stephen Wangh '64, is a Brandeis alumnus.The show, also an HBO movie, is set in the town of Laramie, Wyo. four years ago and documents events after the brutal, deadly beating of Matthew Shepard, a 21-year-old gay student at the University of Wyoming. The members of the Tectonic Theater Project went to Laramie several times and conducted interviews with over 200 people in the town, from a lesbian professor at the University, to people who had been living in Laramie for dozens of years, to the young man who found Matthew after he had been tied to a fence for 18 hours. Due to the interesting format of the play, the piece works on many levels, examining the reactions and feelings of the interviewers themselves, as well members of the community and people directly involved with the incident.

The play is essentially a drama of dialogue, recreating many of the interviews, however there are also reenactments of certain occurrences, like Shepard's funeral and the subsequent trial. The set was bare, save a background of a giant map of Wyoming highlighted by some neon blue lines and a few television screens showing scenes of Wyoming and some major events tied to the murder. Black, wooden chairs were the only props.

Each actor played various roles, sometimes as many as eight or nine. Because of the possible confusion, the current role each person was playing at any given moment had to be announced. These interruptions, however, were not too disruptive, because of the interview format of the play. The actors also wore different costumes for each one of their roles, which were as simple as a different hat or jacket. The actors went in and out of their various roles very smoothly.

Most of the 11 undergraduate actors played one or two roles each, in which they completely shined. Ron Wilson '04, however, was excellent in each of his eight diverse roles, being careful not to let his different parts mesh together. Each character he played was convincing and moving in its own right.

Cynthia Shur '04 especially shined when she played Catherine Connolly, a lesbian professor at the University of Wyoming. Catherine's intense fear for her own safety after the incident was portrayed well. Similarly, Elizabeth Helitzer's '05 performance as Reggie Flutey, the cop who responded to the call when Matthew was found, was executed proficiently and beautifully. Especially moving was the scene when Reggie, who handled Matthew's bloody body, discusses when she discovered Matthew was HIV positive.

Other actors performed standout roles, including James Yeaton '04 as the bartender, Matt Galloway, who was tending the night Matthew left the bar with Aaron McKinney and Russel Henderson, his two murderers and Zack Friedman '05 as Aaron Kreifels, the young student who found Matthew's body. Yeaton as Matt also provided comic relief to the intense play and Friedman seemed to truly epitomize Aaron Kreifels and his trauma in discovering the body.

Many of the actors adopted Midwestern accents, which worked well. Ben Rathbun '04, who played, among other roles, limousine driver Doc O'Connor and Hannah Heilman '04, whose best character was Marge Murray, a Laramie resident, had the most effective and authentic sounding accents. Doc, played by Rathbun, was one of the best characters for comic relief, which was much needed in a play dealing with such a serious and depressing subject matter.

Some interesting directorial decisions were made. The entire cast, attempting to dramatize certain points in the play, often banged their chairs down simultaneously. The problem was this was done so many times it lost its meaning. The subject matter was dramatic enough and did not need these extra effects. One scene in particular, in which Caitlin Steitzer '05 led the cast in a rendition of John Lennon's "Imagine," while Katharine Braun-Levine '04 did an interpretative dance, stuck out from the rest of the dialogue. While the singing was beautiful, and the dancing lovely, the song is simply too clichd to have much meaning anymore.

The only other negative aspect of the play was its length - it was three hours long. While it was very interesting, there is a limit to how long one can watch a single performance. There were a few points at which the show could have ended and not much would have been lost.

That being said, the show was an excellent portrayal of the issues facing a small town struck by a tragedy that turned into international news. The reactions of the townspeople, which ranged from blaming Matthew for his own death for possibly making a pass at Aaron McKinney, to wishing for the death penalty for the murderers, can teach humankind an important lesson about the treatment of homosexuals in America and the world. "The Laramie Project" is an important tool for relaying the heartrending story to the world to help prevent future hate crimes. Brandeis' production was beautifully and respectfully done, and its treatment of such a serious matter will hopefully help educate the campus of such important events in American history.

For more information about "The Laramie Project" and Matthew Shepard, visit www.hbo.com/films/laramie and

www.matthewshepard.org.