The Laramie Project in a U.S. Small Town

Rujira Rojjanaprapayon, Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Communication School of Language and Communication The National Institute of Development Administration (NIDA) Bangkok, Thailand Tel: 02-727-3325, 089-766-3131 E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract This report is about how a theatre production entitled “The Laramie Project” was given in a U.S. Midwestern small town. The focus of this report is how the performance was perceived and interpreted by the concepts of “cultural ethnography/performance ethnography” and “performativity.” Discussion includes: (1) a brief portrait of the show and the town, (2) fundamental concepts of “cultural ethnography/performance ethnography” and “performativity,” and (3) an analysis of the performance in context. The implications of this analysis reveal the use of “cultural ethnography/performance ethnography” and “performativity,” as qualitative research tools, in analyzing performance and other communication practices related to social and cultural issues, particularly on conservatism and hatred in society.

Keywords: Cultural ethnography, performance ethnography, performativity The Laramie Project

The Laramie Project and a U.S. Small and the issues involved were changed Town drastically. In spring semester 2002, the play Utilizing concepts from “cultural The Laramie Project, was presented at the ethnography/performance ethnography” and University of Minnesota, Morris (UMM). “performativity,” as communication This was during my second semester of qualitative research tools, permits an teaching at UMM, and Ray Schultz, who examination of how this performance was was the director of the play and a faculty presented and interpreted in context and how colleague, told me that I had to see it. Even it could affect the audience and probably the though I was aware of the tragedy of whole community, a small town in the U.S. Matthew Shepard in 1998 when I was in Midwest. Thus, in this essay, I will provide Thailand, I did not pay much attention to it. a brief portrait of the show and the town. After seeing the play, I found that my Then, I will offer a brief overview of perceptions and feelings about the tragedy “cultural ethnography/performance ethnography” and “performativity.” Finally,

Remarks: This article is a revision of the paper submitted to the Caucus on Gay and Lesbian Concerns, the National Communication Association (NCA), for the Annual NCA Convention in Miami, Florida in November 2003, and the paper was accepted and later was presented at the convention.

I will present an analysis of this what happened [?]” (HBO Films—The performance in context. Laramie Project—Synopsis). The Laramie Project, UMM, and the UMM, Morris, and The Laramie Project Town of Morris The University of Minnesota, Morris In this section I will discuss the (UMM) is a University of Minnesota nature of this play and a brief description of undergraduate liberal arts campus view as UMM and the town of Morris, Minnesota “unique as an academically rigorous, public where it was given. Such information is undergraduate liberal arts college” (UMM necessary for understanding the meaning of Brief Description/Fact Sheet). The campus any play and its impact on an audience. As is located in the town of Morris, which is in Chesebro (1998) asserts that a performance the prairie region of West Central may be studied as a communicative Minnesota, 160 miles northwest of the twin phenomenon and that historical background cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul. Morris and context embracing such a performance has a population of approximately 5,000, become heavily involved in the process of including the UMM students. The Morris understanding and interpreting. community consists of “a variety of retail, manufacturing, agricultural, and service- The Laramie Project related businesses” (UMM Brief Description/Fact Sheet). Nevertheless, the Kaufman (2001) was inspired by the town is considered rural, agricultural, and “brutal murder of Matthew Shepard” in very conservative, which is the opposite of October 6, 1998, to write the script for The the UMM’s liberalism and sophistication. Laramie Project based on the ethnographic works done by his team called the “Tectonic On February 14-16, 2002, “The Theatre Project,” as he says: Laramie Project” was produced in the Black Box Theatre, in which Morris area The idea of The Laramie Project community members, including the city’s originated in my desire to learn more mayor, made “cameo appearances in about why Matthew Shepard was collaboration with a University of murdered, about what happened that Minnesota, Morris student cast and crew” night, about the town of Laramie (UMM in the News). Having realized the [Wyoming]. The idea of listening to town’s characteristics, Ray Schultz, the the citizens talk really interested me. director of the play and UMM assistant How is Laramie different from the professor of theater at that time, intended to rest of the country, and how is it raise social issues for the campus and the similar? (p. vi) community through his production, saying, Kaufman asserts that The Laramie Project is The original production of “The not about the Matthew Shepard case, but is a Laramie Project” had eight actors story about a town, saying, “[T]his is not portraying all the character[s]…. about the case. This is about the town: why We're doing something a little did this happen here, what are people different this time. Parallels can be saying, how do they feel and think about Remarks: This article is a revision of the paper submitted to the Caucus on Gay and Lesbian Concerns, the National Communication Association (NCA), for the Annual NCA Convention in Miami, Florida in November 2003, and the paper was accepted and later was presented at the convention.

found between the towns of Morris we see ourselves and about the values, and Laramie, indeed Laramie and traditions, and customs that make up our many small towns all across culture or social community” (p. 124). America. In the case of Laramie and According to Wood, performance may Morris, both communities have a “reconstruct or reproduce the cultural large percentage of college students, views,” one example of which is graffiti, both are in rural locations and, as which “consist of symbols that reflect the most towns do, both boast [of values, issues, and identities important in having] community members with a particular cultures or social wide variety of perspectives and communities…[and] also inform others of opinions on almost any topic you can values, identities, and issues important to a think of. (UMM in the News) particular social group” (p. 124). Thanks to Schultz’s explanation of his Conquergood (1986) says that in inspiration, the production may be discussed “ethnography of performance,” performance as a communication effort between the can be understood in two ways: producer and the audience, which included (1) performance as cultural process, and both university and town people, in regard to (2) performance as ethnographic praxis the community’s social issues including (p.55). In “performance as cultural process,” conservatism and hatred toward certain cultural performances are “culturally groups of people. In the next section, an reflexive events” and can be understood as overview of key concepts from “social productivity,” as Conquergood “performance ethnography” and explains, “performance as political action” is presented. Subsequently, these concepts are Cultural performance, such as employed as a framework in analyzing the rituals, ceremonies, celebrations, presentation of this play at UMM. myths, stories, songs, jokes, carnivals, contests, games, parties, Performance Ethnography and politesse, and other expressive Performance as Political Action traditions, are culturally reflexive events that focus, interpret, Two conceptual frameworks are punctuate, and endow useful for an analysis of the play at UMM. meaningfulness to experience…. It is The descriptions are given below. the capacity of cultural performance to induce self-knowledge, self- Performance Ethnography awareness, plural reflexivity, that Wood (2004) explains the essence of makes it political. (p. 59) performance ethnography as it “attempts to In “ethnographic praxis as understand how symbolic behaviors actually performance,” Conquergood (1986) suggests perform—and sometimes challenge— that it, as a second level of analysis or cultural values and personal identities. In understanding, can be viewed as “a other words, individual and group delicately balanced performance between performances reveal some things about how ethnographer and native consultants” Remarks: This article is a revision of the paper submitted to the Caucus on Gay and Lesbian Concerns, the National Communication Association (NCA), for the Annual NCA Convention in Miami, Florida in November 2003, and the paper was accepted and later was presented at the convention.

(p.60). He adds that the mutual performance studies, “is a key concept both understanding between the two parties, for performance studies scholars who shown through the performance, is what embrace the political character of must be examined, saying, performances and for scholars in other branches of performance work” (p. 132). The relationship between Wood explains that performativity is ethnographer and native is not a fundamentally important because natural one; it is absolutely “performativity is not the mere constructed and contingent upon a representation of preexisting identity willing suspension of disbelief by (or other reality); performativity means that both parties in the encounter…. it is performance that we enact, or generate, Authentic fieldwork depends on the very phenomenon to which acknowledgement of its mutual performativity refers” (p. 133). constructedness through performance, fiction, intersubjective Pollack (1998) explains that dialogue between Self and Other…. performativity emphasizes “the process by The performative view brings which meanings, selves, and other effects ethnographer and native together as are produced…the embodied process of co-actors, mutually engaged making meaning” (p.20); the active collaborators in a fragile fliction…. collaborative role of audiences in producing Instead of the researcher presented as the meaning of performance is emphasized. detached and controlling, the Consistent with Pollack’s perspective, Wood performative view admits the fragile (2004) asserts that performance has the situation of the fieldworker.” potential to reinscribe as well as to resist (pp. 60-61) what it presents, which can be cultural practices identities, and relationships, and As an application following analysis then changes among audience members may of these two levels of ethnography happen. performance, Conquergood (1998) went to the Ban Vinai Hmong refugee camps in Consequently, performance may Thailand several times in 1980’s and become “a primary means of critiquing “helped design and direct a health education social meanings and the identities and campaign which used this wealth of practices they foster” (Wood, 2004, performance” (pp. 220-221). Analogously, p. 134). Then, such critique “offered by The Laramie Project at UMM also an performance as political action challenges ethnography performance may be analyzed. the very social conventions and norms that First, however, an overview of frame—and perhaps limit—individual “performance as political action” or identities and social relations” (Wood, performativity is necessary. p. 134). Conquergood (1991) raises four questions derived from such practices: Performance as Political Action  What is the relationship between Wood (2004) posits that performance performance and power? as political action, i.e.,“performativity” in

 How does performance reproduce, Reflection of the Reality at UMM enable, sustain, challenge, subvert, and Morris critique, and naturalize ideology? The play became the talk of the town  How does performance after it was advertised throughout the UMM simultaneously reproduce (and thus campus and the town of Morris. UMM is a highlight) and resist (and thus invite liberal place, the town is very conservative, change) hegemony? the content of the play is related to a hate crime of a homosexual. Ray Schultz wanted  How does performance to establish cognitive parallelism between accommodate and contest Laramie and Morris because he knew there domination? (p. 190) had been controversies about homosexuality and homosexuals in Morris. In specific, in The fundamental questions guiding November 2001, both UMM’s homecoming performance ethnography and analysis of king and queen were gay men, which has performance as political action have been raised disputes about appropriateness. Many presented. An analysis of The Laramie people in Morris and nearby towns were Project may be offered. upset by this incident and they protested in Analysis many ways, such as by stopping their donations and not sending their children to This analysis of The Laramie Project study at UMM. The play was presented a at UMM, based on performance few months after. ethnography and performance as political action, consists of two parts. In the first part Thus, the play revealed a reality of an examination of how the play was the town and the UMM campus: the presented and interpreted is presented. In the existence of two worlds in one place called second part, an investigation of the impacts Morris. The major theme of the play that of the play is reported in response to the four was revealed so prominently was prejudice questions raised by Conquergood (1991). and hatred towards those who are non- heterosexual and non-white. Of course, there Performance Ethnography and The had been groups in Morris who have tried to Laramie Project at UMM create common ground, but the success of their efforts was still unknown. The issue of In discussing how The Laramie “mutual understanding between the audience Project at UMM was presented and may be and the performers” must be raised. interpreted by performance ethnography, two questions are addressed: (1) How did Mutual Understanding: The Audience and the performance reveal or reflect the values, the Performers beliefs, and the status quo of the community? and (2) How did the meaning Three types of audiences attended of the those values, beliefs and the status this show: those who were homosexuals, quo emerge as a mutual understanding those who tolerated homosexuals and between the audience and the performers in homosexuality, and those who wanted to that context? know more about homosexuals and Remarks: This article is a revision of the paper submitted to the Caucus on Gay and Lesbian Concerns, the National Communication Association (NCA), for the Annual NCA Convention in Miami, Florida in November 2003, and the paper was accepted and later was presented at the convention.

homosexuality. Those who were against challenge, subvert, critique, homosexuality were not part of the crowd. and naturalize ideology? Also, some members of the cast in this performance were town people, including This performance enabled the voice the mayor. Such involvement indicates that of the homosexuals and those who tolerated collaboration between the two homosexuality to be heard while challenging communities—the town and the the existing power of the mainstream in campus—emerged. context. Certainly, it was also a criticism that the oppression was wrong, that Mutual understanding between prejudice and narrow-mindedness towards audience and the performers became real homosexuality were illegitimate, unfair, and and intriguing as a result the performance. dehumanizing, and that those who oppressed There was a “dialogue” after the and held negative attitudes towards performance; audience members expressed homosexuality needed to change their their understanding of the subject matter mindset. projected in the show through their questions, concerns, and admitted  How does performance frustrations. simultaneously reproduce (and thus highlight) and Performance as Political Action and The resist (and thus invite Laramie Project at UMM change) hegemony? The four questions raised by As stated above, the play demanded Conquergood (1991) provided a basis for immediate changes within the community, analysis. including resistance of hegemony and the oppression against homosexuality. However,  What is the relationship the effects of the performance did not last between performance and power? long. Changes which would resist and challenge hegemony were not sustained; the Performance of The Laramie Project community did not challenge hegemony or reflected power struggle between two oppression of homosexuals and groups: (1) the homosexuals and those who homosexuality after the show. tolerated homosexuality and (2) those who did not tolerate homosexuals and  How does performance homosexuality and were more likely accommodate and contest conservative in viewpoint. In the UMM domination? context, the performance was seen as a vehicle for the former to speak their voice The performance did not contest the and be heard. The audience, in general, domination of those who did not tolerate perceived there to be oppression in the homosexuality in the community though it context. did provide a need for fairness and open- mindedness within the community.  How does performance Unfortunately, the domination continued reproduce, enable, sustain, because there were agencies that encouraged

and perpetuated hatred and unfair treatment but have never been realized and addressed towards homosexuals and homosexuality in by community members. Performance is not the community, such as certain church only for entertainment purposes, but is also groups and prevailing conservative values. for the better “well-being” of those who have been oppressed by dominant culture.

Conclusion and Implications References This paper has been a report of a qualitative analysis of the performance of [1]. Chesebro, J. (1998). Conflict The Laramie Project produced at the UMM performance study studies as campus in February 2001. A brief portrait of paradox, culture, and manifesto: A the show and the context—UMM and future orientation. In S. J. Dailey Morris—has been provided, as well as an (Ed.), The future of performance overview of “cultural ethnography/ studies: Visions and revisions (pp. performance ethnography” and 310-319). Annandale, VA: National “performativity” as conceptual frameworks Communication Association (NCA). for analysis. The Laramie Project may be understood as a political tool fostering social [2] Conquergood, D. (1986). Performing awareness of the existence of homosexuals cultures, ethnography, epistemology, and homosexuality and their problems. and ethics. In H. Geissner (Ed.), Miteinader sprechen und hundeln Herein, the issues of social (pp. 55-66). Frankfurt, Germany: oppression, cultural ethnography/ Scripter. performance ethnography, and performance as political action or performativity are [3] Conquergood, D. (1991). Rethinking related to each other as communicative ethnography: toward a critical phenomena. Future research using these cultural studies politics. concepts might include analysis of other Communication Monographs, 58, pp. kinds of social oppressions that may happen 179-194. in problematic contexts, such as being a [4] Conquergood, D. (1998). Health theatre non-white in a rural and remote area in the in a Hmong refugee camp. In U.S. or being a Burmese illegal worker in a J.Cohen-Cruz (Ed.), Radical street Thai factory or workplace and how such performance (pp. 310-319). oppressions are projected through Annandale, VA: National performances given to audiences in those Communication Association (NCA). contexts. [5] HBO Films-The Laramie Project- The Laramie Project at UMM is an Synopsis. Retrieved June 24, 2003 example of social oppressions that occur from throughout the U.S. and elsewhere. http://www.hbo.com/films/laramie/s Performances such as this may help people ynopsis/index.html be aware of problems that have long existed

[6] Kaufman, M. (2001). The Laramie project. New York: Vintage Books. [7] Pollack, D. (Ed.). (1998). Exceptional spaces: essays in performance and history. Chapel Hill” University of North Carolina Press. [8] UMM in the News. Retrieved November 9, 2003 from http://www.mrs.umn.edu/news/00sto ries/archives/spring2002/laramie012 902.shtml [9] UMM Brief Description/Fact Sheet. Retrieved November 9, 2003 from http://www.mrs.umn.edu/welcome/b rief.shtml [10] Wood, J. (2004). Communication theories in action: An introduction (3rd ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.