The Laramie Project - Help Please

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 7:22pm

Hey my american friends, i call on you for help!

So my company has just had a great year with a series of hit shows (inc Breakfast Club and the UK premier of Dog Sees God which is transferring to a large theatre in January wooh wooh)

Now all talk has turned to 2009 and what we should be doing, we know we have an original play titled 'Saved' which we are premiering in November but we have a slot to fill in June and we all seem pretty intrigued about producing The Laramie Project here in Manchester in the heart of the Gay Village.

Ive just watched a copy of the play from NY which clocked in at around 2 hrs but ive just seen someone comment on another thread about when they watched it it was 3 and a half hours long.Did they edit the show down later or was that done by the company who produced it in NY?

Also have you seen any productions, what were your thoughts?
Thanks so much xx

[dramamama611]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 7:41pm

done well it's an amazing piece of theatre and terribly touching. In the wrong hands it feels like a desperate preacher.

Here in the state we have groups that OFTEN will come and protest productions...in some not so peaceful ways. My colleague directed it about 3 years ago and it was very well received...without the controverial protests...which is odd because less than 20 miles away it was done about 6 months earlier and they DID have protesters.

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 7:56pm

yikes, well luckily i dont think we will have protesters here
What was your running time? x

[sally1112]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 8:05pm

Just saw a regional production last month by a theater group here in Louisville called Pandora Productions which specializes in gay themed shows.
Aside from just the topic, I knew very little of the show when I went to see it. Luckily it was a very well-done production. I found the source material fascinating and moving. I went out of curiosity and left feeling very touched.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 8:09pm

I couldn't give you a fair guesstimate....he did a cut version..I think. Sadly, I was knee deep in a production in a different building and had little to do with it except see it.

[Schmerg_The_Impaler]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 8:10pm

I just saw a high school production last week, and I still haven't gotten over the impact. A VERY powerful piece, but you have to stage it well or it'll actually feel boring and lose the intensity. It's a great show, though, and you should definitely do it-- and it's an awesome way for actors to show off their versatility, playing characters of different genders, different ages, different beliefs and personalities.

The best thing about the show is that since it's all taken from real interviews, no one's a completely flat character (well, maybe Fred Phelps, but he's in there for a split-second) and it's great to explore all of the nuances. Even Matthew Shepard, who's only mentioned and never apppears in person, isn't depicted as a totally blameless martyr.

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 8:15pm

aww well thanks for your help dramamama611 xx

Schmerg_The_Impaler oh thanks for that so much, that fills me with confidence. The NY one i watched on DVD was riveting, staged in a very basic but high impact way.It was great that the show (like you said) did not just paint Matthew as Martyr, he portrays him as a human with flaws, like all of us.

Was the story of Matthew as big in America as the show makes out?, i know e had the story here when it happened but not to a huge degree

[dramamama611]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 8:24pm

Yes, the story of Matthew Shepard was really big news here for a while. I'm sure it impacted certain communities more than anything.

Re-iterating another poster: ALL of the script is from all the witnessess and locals. Very powerful indeed!

I have to admit: this is a play that I was suppose to direct. My colleague kept saying it wasn't his type of play. Then his daughters school did it and he stole it out from under me!

I'll have to wait a few years...but we'll do it again!

[sally1112]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 8:28pm

The version I saw was three acts with two intermissions.

[Schmerg_The_Impaler]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 8:34pm

^ Yeah, I also saw it with two intermissions. And I feel like the intermissions are placed at strategic moments in the show, times when they want you to take a break and think about it. It might become overwhelming without the intermission. But the second intermission was only a few minutes long.

[sally1112]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 8:36pm

And for me, the time went by very quickly. The story keeps you on edge.

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 8:37pm

Hmm thats interesting as like i said the one i watched from Union City NY clocked in at around 2 hours with one Interval and it seemed like the complete play, now that's clever editing

[blaxx]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 8:40pm

I put it on too, and it ran just over 3 hours. Doubt you can get away with less time, unless they were speaking REALLY fast or illegally edited the script.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 8:42pm

You can get permission to cut the script. It's not always illegal to do so.

I know a group that did a 40 minute cutting of it WITH PERMISSION.

[Nicole3293]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 8:49pm

My school did it and it was probally one of the best plays I ever was in. The message is amazing and there are some really touching monologues in there. My school's running time was 3 hours a little bit over. Altho from the way we did it people really weren't complaining about the length because they were captivated the whole time. You should deffinitly try to do this show not only is it a great piece but the experience and the meaning behind the whole thing is truly amazing.

[E.Davis]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 9:00pm

I did it lats year in March in my Senior year at High School...We staged it very stark with the set on Platforms and Risers...The only real set piece was the buck fence that we made....Everyone was in all Black but in different variations of clothing....I played Greg Pierotti and all of His attached Characters. My favorites were, Father Roger, Jonas and Rulon Stacey....I think those characters have a lot of heart....it was a piece that I am glad my school did and it is beautiful....I learned the ability to cry on stage...Which is something I have quite difficulties with up until then...Hope that helps

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 11/12/08 at 7:24am

aww thanks guys for all your help

One last question, do you know who carries the rights for the play x

[mormonophobic]

Posted: 11/12/08 at 10:37am

Dramatists Play Service, Inc.
And just to comment on it, seen the play three times, plus performed a 10-minute DI (dramatic interpretation) as Dennis Shepard (the whole speech at the end is actually REALLY long) and never once has this piece lost its effectiveness. It is truly one of those great works of theater that no matter how trimmed still retain their impact. One of the times I saw it, it was only a one-act version (not even sure what they trimmed) and it was still just as good - ended with them playing an Elton John song (I don't recall which one) and having all the characters pin ribbons onto this gigantic fence they had as their only set-piece onstage. Very sad. Oh, and when the performing arts school here did it (Las Vegas Academy), we not only got protesters. We got the real ones - as in Fred Phelps and his whole insane ilk from the play itself. It was actually kind of surreal protesting against these horrible protesters about a play that deals with those themes, ideas, and people as actual characters. Interesting.

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 11/12/08 at 12:06pm

Thanks for that

I knew i could rely on you lot

[gymdudeva]

Posted: 11/12/08 at 4:30pm

I was in a production a few years ago (played Dennis Shepard among others...what an amazing experience). Our produciton was not over two and a half hours total (I seem to remember 2:20), but for the second intermission we just took a "pause" with the house lights up to half for a couple of minutes, not a full intermission. We got a lot of compliments on how quickly it moved and how tight it was....especially compared with another production across town several months earlier which every one said really dragged. I think the trick is not having lots of scenery or costume changes, and keeping the transitions between scenes quick and seamless. It should be a dazzling mosaic rather than a long weepy thing full of meaningful pauses and between-scenes mood music. We just sort of attacked it and did it from the heart without too much pondering analysis....with great results.