October 5, 2023 / Modified jan 9, 2024 4:58 p.m.

Remembering Matthew Shepard 25 years later.

Also on Arizona Spotlight: True Concord Voices & Orchestra celebrates their 20th season with "Songs of America" featuring the work of Raven Chacon; and, Stories the Soar!

laramie project rehearsal hero Co-writer and director Greg Pierotti chats with cast member Isabella Russo during a rehearsal of" The Laramie Project" in 2023.
Tim Fuller

Featured on the October 5th, 2023 edition of ARIZONA SPOTLIGHT with host Mark McLemore:

Arizona Spotlight

October 5, 2023

NPR
(Download MP3)
- This month marks 25 years since Matthew Shepard was killed in an anti-gay hate crime committed in Laramie, Wyoming. “The Laramie Project” is a play created from a series of interviews with local residents at the time. From The University of Arizona School of Theatre, Film & Television (TFTV), meet director, Greg Pierotti, who was also one of the play’s creators, plus two student actors who are performing “The Laramie Project” later this month in Tucson. For showtimes and ticketing information, click here.

On Oct. 19, Matthew Shepard's parents, Judy and Dennis Shepard, will take part in Matthew Shepard's Legacy: Then and Now, an in-person, public conversation centered around the legacy and impact of their son at the Gallagher Theater, hosted by the University of Arizona School of Theatre, Film & Television and the LBGTQ+ Institute.

Laramie Project poster unsized VIEW LARGER The University of Arizona School of Theatre, Film & Television will open it's 23/24 season with "The Laramie Project" directed by TFTV Assistant Professor Greg Pierotti.
laramie project spot babacar 2 Babacar Ba (center) rehearses a scene from The Laramie Project.
Photo by Tim Fuller
laramie project spot babacar 1 Babacar Ba (front) rehearses a scene from The Laramie Project.
Photo by Tim Fuller
laramie project hope spot 1 Hope Niven (wearing red shawl) rehearses a scene from The Laramie Project.
Photo by Tim Fuller
Laramie inside out poster unsized VIEW LARGER A poster for "Laramie Inside Out," an award-winning documentary by School of Theatre, Film & Television professor Beverly Seckinger.
  • Meet Raven Chacon, a Diné-American composer, musician and artist, born in Fort Defiance, Arizona within the Navajo Nation. In 2022, Chacon became the first Native American to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music. His “Voiceless Mass” will be performed by True Concord Voices & Orchestra in "Songs of America" running from October 13th through the 15th, as part of the opening celebration of their 20th season.

_In addition, a multi-media exhibit called "While Hissing" by Raven Chacon is showing at The Museum of Contemporary Art Tucson now through Dec. 17. You can find more information on the MOCA website here

Raven Chacon uns VIEW LARGER Pulitzer Prize winning composer and artist Raven Chacon.
Songs of America unsized  VIEW LARGER "Songs of America" will open True Concord Voices & Orchestra 20th anniversary season.
true concord orchestra spot
  • And, the Tucson non-profit Literacy Connects sponsors a group of performers and musicians called “Stories That Soar!”. They help young writers realize the power and potential of bringing their stories to life, for the stage, video, and radio. We are now presenting these stories on the first Thursday of every month here on Arizona Spotlight.

This time, listen to a song written by Angela, a 2nd grader from Naco Elementary, that transcends politics to become a deeply personal account of what living on the U.S. / Mexico border means to some families.


Webpage by Leah Britton.

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