The Laramie Project: The Death of Many

10/1/2013

Ian Weatherseed, new to TGTG, will play Russell Henderson. This is one of the young men who kidnapped Matthew Shepard then went on to pistol-whip him into a coma while he was tied to a fence outside Laramie, Wyoming in 1998. Shepard, 21, died five days after the gruesome attack.

"I know what I did was very wrong, and I regret greatly what I did. You have my greatest sympathy for what happened. I hope that one day you will be able to find it in your hearts to forgive me..." Russell Henderson was sentenced to life imprisonment.

Ian shared that "Russell Henderson didn't make sense to me for the longest time, and then, suddenly, when doing the first public reading, it hit me - everyone is repulsed by him, by what he did. As he's standing there in the courtroom, waiting for the verdict to be read, he is regarded as nothing more than a human cockroach... and all because of one stupid act that did not have to happen."

"For him, the courtroom is unreal. How did this come to pass? How did one drunken mishap change everything? And then, the wretched question: Why on earth did I do what I did? And how can I ever make things right again?"

After reading Ian's notes on Russell, Sarah-Kate shared the following:

Every day we make mistakes. At home, at the office, at the gym, socially, with our friends and family, and sometimes alone. Some are bigger than others. Some we don't even think about after we realized what we have just done.

Then, there are the ones that we hold on to for years; in our minds and for some in our hearts. We replay the entire situation, the conversations, the actions, and the reactions of all involved and finally, we slowly turn our mind’s eye to our part in the not to be forgotten miserable mistake.

I believe we spend such time on our bigger mistakes because they not only hurt/harm us but the consequences have the power to touch those that love, like, and care for us.

Speaking for myself, some of my mistakes have cost me a car, a job, a friend, some money; okay more than one friend and a lot of money….the consequences of being young and hardheaded.

But to make a mistake that would cost me my life??? To be locked away at 21 FOREVER, my brain can’t wrap itself around this concept. It also can’t grasp what Russell and Aaron did to Matthew that resulted in their sentences of life imprisonment.

Because of Russell's and Aaron's choices, the lives of the people living within the small community of Laramie completely changed overnight. All because, as Ian shared, "one stupid act that did not have to happen."

Thoughts and insights are welcomed on this and all TGTG blog topics.

4 Comments

Nathen

9/30/2013 06:02:21 pm

The act of beating to death Mathew Shepard because of homophobia is not just a 'stupid mistake'; it was an act of vicious violence that took a human life. That is what the perpetrators should be remorseful for , not going to prison for life as a consequence of their actions.

Ian

9/30/2013 07:41:52 pm

Hi Nathen, thank you for sharing your feelings about this.

Perhaps the post above is unclear - the notion of a "stupid act" comes via a critical reading of the script to determine the portrayed individual's characterization; it is how I have come to understand Henderson's perspective of the event. It is not a judgement nor a qualifier of the act but an attempt to provide an assumed feeling-based motivation from which I project myself into his skin.

Participating in "The Laramie Project" has been a devastating study of the consequences of hateful intolerance. I hope that you are able to attend a performance, as the messages it carries are powerful and ever-necessary in a world that frequently fails to recognize its own shadow, and, as such, is quick to judge, condemn and destroy.

9/30/2013 06:27:56 pm

My comment doesn't mean this isn't a great project by GT! I wish you all the best and a great success

Sarah-Kate

10/6/2013 04:49:37 pm

Hi Nathen,

We hope to see you at one of the performances of The Laramie Project. I would agree with Ian as he prepares himself to act the role of Russell. Reading and watching the videos of Russell in the early days of his pretrial and then his trial, he did come off as this was all just one big 'joke.' From my point of view, his attitude and body language said this was no big deal. Of course it was. A young man was/is dead. His parents were robbed of their son's future and all the memories that come with your child's growing up years and family life. To play this with little thought cannot be done. I appreciate the depth that these actors are needing to find to portray the many different characters that will come to life on the 17th of October.

Players and directors

The Laramie Project: The Death of Many

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