We are delighted to announce that Fusion is presenting a tour of ‘The Laramie Project’ in April 2006.
‘The Laramie Project’ is a breathtaking theatrical collage that explores the depths to which humanity can sink and the heights of compassion of which we are capable.

THE LARAMIE PROJECT
By Moisés Kaufman
And the members of Tectonic Theater Project

Sponsored by the Grimsby Institute of Further & Higher Education and Conoco Philips

Thursday 20th April 2006, 7.30pm at The Broadbent Theatre in Wickenby
Tickets available from 01673 885500 or e mail box.office@broadbent.org
Visit http://www.broadbent.org/

Saturday 22nd April 2006, 7.30pm at The Central Hall in Grimsby
Tickets available from the Caxton Theatre Box Office at Grimsby Central Library
Tel: 01472 346251

Monday 24th April 2006, 2pm at the Grimsby Institute of Further & Higher Education
Private Performance for students

Tuesday 25th April 2006, 7.30pm at the Brookenby Theatre in Brookenby
Tickets available on the door

In October 1998 a twenty-one-year-old student at the University of Wyoming was kidnapped, severely beaten and left to die, tied to a fence on the outskirts of Laramie, Wyoming. His name was Matthew Shephard, and he was the victim of this assault because he was gay. Moisés Kaufman and fellow members of the Tectonic Theater Project made six trips to Laramie over the course of a year and a half in the aftermath of the beating and during the trial of the two young men accused of killing Shephard. They conducted more than 200 interviews with the people of the town. Some people interviewed were directly connected to the case and others were citizens of Laramie.

THE LARAMIE PROJECT chronicles the life of the town of Laramie in the year after the murder. Kaufman and Tectonic Theater members have constructed a deeply moving theatrical experience from these interviews and their own experiences.

POWERFUL DRAMA WILL HAVE TEARS FLOWING

A Powerful and emotive drama which tells the true story of a small town faced with the killing of a homosexual male will have you in tears by the end.
The Laramie Project, Grimsby Institute Performed by Fusion Theatre and Arts, just six actors play more than 35 characters in The Laramie Project, flowing between the different thoughts of Laramie residents.
The play is story written by Moises Kaufman and members of the Tectonic Theater project.
They interviewed many people in Laramie about the town and the repercussions of the killing of student Matthew Shephard.
The play gives some controversial opinions on homosexuality and an insight into the mindset of a small town.
Director Emma Nicholson said: "It was a small town like Grimsby. A lot of people knew each other. It's very powerful. Most of the audience ended up crying."
The play follows the lives of those affected by the murder - such as a police officer who contracts HIV from the body as well as the trials of the two boys who killed Matthew.
At the end, the prosecution ask the father if he wants the killers put to death.
He gives a moving statement about how he has lost his son, but will not sentence the killers to their deaths.
The play has a very fast pace because it switches between different characters, including the Tectonic Theater which did the interviews, but the actors make it easy to follow by changing their accents and props.
Heather Pearson (18), from Franklin College, who played five different characters, said: "It's easy to get one accent but you have to get a lot of different ones to distinguish the characters, which is hard.
"The emotional side was quite tough - you go from someone with a lot of compassion to someone who hates homosexuals."

The Grimsby Evening Telegraph

‘One of the ten best plays of the year. A pioneering work of theatrical reportage and a powerful stage event.’ - Time Magazine

‘Astonishing. Not since Angels in America has a play attempted so much; nothing less than an examination of the American psyche at the end of the millennium.’ - Associated Press

‘There emerges a mosaic as moving and important as any you will see on the walls of the churches of the world. Nothing short of stunning. You will be held in rapt attention. A theatrical event not to be missed.’ - New York Magazine