Springfield Civic Theatre opens The Laramie Project tonight at John Legend Theater, then plays it Friday night and Saturday afternoon. The company is staging a documentary play about how residents of Laramie, Wyoming, reacted after Matthew Shepard, a young gay man, was murdered, and the listed run is a single weekend.
Performances are at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 12, and Friday, Nov. 13, and at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 14, in the John Legend Theater, according to Springfield Civic Theatre. WDTN lists the house at 700 S. Limestone St.
A Documentary Play, Not a Standard Plot
The theater's listing calls The Laramie Project a documentary play exploring the reactions of Laramie residents to Shepard's murder. The evening is framed around those responses, not around a conventional fictional plot. WDTN's Living Dayton item, published Thursday, described the Springfield production as emotional and thought-provoking.
The play had a separate campus production earlier this year. A USC digital program lists The Laramie Project at McClintock Theatre from Feb. 27 through March 2, directed by Chrisanne Blankenship. That was a different city, a different director and a different cast from the weekend on South Limestone.
A Named Director and a Season Date
Lorrie Sparrow-Knapp is directing the Springfield production. WDTN identified Tom Hand as an actor in the show and reported that he joined Living Dayton to talk about the story behind the production and what audiences can expect.
The dates were already on a public season list. The Springfield News-Sun reported the play for Nov. 12-14 as part of the 2026-27 season, in coverage of a sampler teasing shows for the company's 95th season. Opening night is the first of those dates. Saturday afternoon is the last one listed.
Listed Prices and a 4 p.m. Cutoff
Tickets are listed at $23.02, or $19.90 for veterans, seniors and students. The theater gives the Legend Box Office, (937) 505-2945, as the contact.
The desk is open 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, except on days Springfield City Schools are closed. A 7:30 p.m. curtain doesn't come with an evening window. Anyone working from the listing has a weekday phone call, before 4, on a day the city schools are in session.
