William Sampson spent the past three months preparing for his role in Timber Creek High School’s spring play.
Taylor Silvestri was excited to play a role based on a real person.
Neither Timber Creek High School sophomore saw Keller ISD’s decision to cancel their performance of “The Laramie Project” — which included more than 70 students — coming. Students plan to voice their concerns to the school board Feb. 29.
“I was a little blindsided,” Sampson, 16, told the Fort Worth Report. “It was a role I really wanted to perform. I was a little dejected when I heard it was being canceled.”
“The Laramie Project” is a play that recounts the aftermath of the murder of Matthew Shepard, a gay University of Wyoming student who was beaten and tied to a fence outside of Laramie in 1998.
“The decision to move forward with another production at TCHS was based on the desire to provide a performance similar to the ones that have created much excitement from the community, like this year’s musical productions of ‘Mary Poppins’ and ‘White Christmas,’” Keller ISD said in a statement.
On Feb. 24, a petition was started on change.org imploring Keller ISD to allow Timber Creek students to perform the play. As of the Report’s publication deadline on Feb. 29, the petition had 3,205 signatures.
“This would have been my first time on the stage, and I was really looking forward to it and to share the story of Matthew Shepard,” said junior Mars Matus, 16. “It feels like they are silencing (LGBTQ+) voices.”
Silvestri, 16, said she was heartbroken when she heard the news. She described the play as an important story to tell, particularly at this moment.
“What’s been lost is the opportunity for all of these kids who have never had the chance to perform onstage before. They’ve lost that opportunity to tell this story,” she said.
Timber Creek High School, which is in Fort Worth, approved the play in late 2023, according to the students.
After the play was canceled, William emailed Keller ISD Superintendent Tracy Johnson, according to a screenshot he provided to the Report. He asked for the reasoning behind stopping his school’s production.
“There really wasn’t a specific reason for not moving forward with ‘The Laramie Project.’ This play was proposed a couple of years ago (before my time as superintendent), and it was denied. I’m not sure of the reason,” Johnson wrote to William.
Johnson started leading Keller ISD on Jan. 2.
The superintendent’s understanding was that the play would be studied in class only, she stated.
“When we consider productions that happen in the fall and spring, the fine arts department will always look back and make choices based on plays or musical performances that have had past success,” Johnson wrote in the email to Sampson. “This is the case for the spring TCHS (Timber Creek High School) performance.”
Johnson emphasized to Sampson that this falls on her.
“Since I am the superintendent, I will always take the ownership of final decisions,” she said.
The play was modified for the Timber Creek students’ performance, Sampson said. Johnson also confirmed to Sampson that she was aware the district’s fine arts department made adjustments to the script.
“I trust their judgment and modifications to fit the expectations of curriculum for this class study,” the superintendent said. “For me to read the script in an attempt to change my mind isn’t necessary, because it was never about the subject matter.”
Jacob Sanchez is an enterprise journalist for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at jacob.sanchez@fortworthreport.org or @_jacob_sanchez.
Matthew Sgroi is an education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at matthew.sgroi@fortworthreport.org or @MatthewSgroi1.
At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
This article first appeared on Fort Worth Report and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
