PORTLAND - A local high school has canceled a play about a gay man, after the principal deemed the sexual content and the play's use of profanity offensive.
"The Laramie Project'' was in production at Southridge High School when Principal Amy Gordon decided to pull the plug. She could not be reached for comment.
The play chronicles the true story of Matthew Shepard, a 21-year-old gay college student, who was killed seven years ago in Laramie, Wyo. The production - which has been performed at schools around the country including at a Hillsboro high school - pieces together the events surrounding the killing through the reactions of numerous residents of Laramie. Members of the theater community are charging that the play is under attack because it features a gay character, not because of its sexual content.
Wade Willis, Southridge theater arts director, chose the play for its educational value and the challenge it would present student actors, he said.
"Everything I hear about presenting something `controversial' is that you have to put forth all sides," Willis told The Oregonian. ``You can't be more complete than this in presenting multiple points of view.''
But Maureen Wheeler, a spokeswoman for the school district, said the play is considered controversial because it contains profanity and sexual content.
She also said Willis failed to have the selection reviewed by the school's principal, in keeping with the district's controversial materials policies.
from The Register-Guard
What a sad commentary on people who consider themselves educators. Do they think that sexuality and profanity do not exist in the high school students lives? The attitude just proves the point of the play.
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