For the first time, blazing hot lights shine on the underclassmen. They step out from behind the curtains and stare at a sea of smiling faces. The pressure is on to tell the tragic and life changing story of Matthew Sheppard.

The play tells the story of the hate crimes committed against Matthew Shepard, in Laramie, Wyoming, through a series of interviews conducted by members of the Tectonic Theatre Project. The show is being directed by juniors auditioning to become senior directors the following school year.

“What’s unique about the show is detail of the hate crime. The show gives a insightful depiction of the hate issues that are still prevalent today,” junior director Blake Moyer said.

The junior directors are faced with the task directing true event.

“Sometimes, we forget that all of the people and scenarios included in this show actually existed, which just adds to the gravity of it,” junior director Emily Robinett said.  “We are trying to portray such an earth shattering event so my primary goal is to simply do it justice. We cannot make the situation graver than it is, so it’s our job to share it to its full extent.”

Each of the junior directors have been assigned specific actors to guide.

“I’ve been working with Gillian Griffis, who is an actress who very much focuses on vocal variety, which I love because I think that it adds a whole new level of depth to her characters,” Robinett said.

The show features a combination of freshman and sophomore students.

“I auditioned because I wanted to be a part of a show so that I could grow as an actress,” freshman Anika Scoma said.

Every year Bowie puts on a monologue project to involve the underclassmen, especially the freshman. This year the Starlight Theatre Company is trying something different.

“This experience will help the actors grow because of the realism of the show,” Moyer said. “It will help actors totally portray another character and fully develop a real life character, a chance the underclassmen might have not gotten before.”

Directing the Laramie Project will give juniors a chance to audition for senior directing.

“I would love to be a senior director because ever since joining theatre at Bowie, I want to share everything that I love about acting with as many people as I can,” Robinett said. “There are so many beautiful literary and dramatic works that I desperately want to put on stage because I believe that their story deserves to be told.”

For many of the junior directors, theatre is something that they want to pursue as a career and directing is the first step to accomplishing that.

“My dream would be to be on a production team for a major production or to become a professor of theatre, because no words can describe the joy I receive when I’m able to share my insight with fellow artists and see it developed into something of a phenomenon,” Robinett said. “That’s truly what it is: the preservation and presentation of a culture. I look forward to seeing where my senior year takes me.”