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Keller ISD’s new theater policy prompts parent petition against alleged censorship

A group of people sit and stand in front of a stone wall with windows looking outside. One woman in a purple shirt holds up a sign reading "hate is not a Laramie value."
Matthew Sgroi
/
Fort Worth Report
Parents protest at Keller ISD's Timber Creek High School over the cancellation of the play "The Laramie Project" last February. A new petition pushing back on Keller ISD's policy for student plays and musicals has more than 600 signatures.

A petition on Change.org seeks signers to join an effort against Keller ISD’s new theater policy, approved in August, that some call censorship.

Parent Courtney Mullaney launched the petition to end the policy, which requires a superintendent-led review of every play and musical before it can be performed.

As a result, Mullaney said, previously approved productions, including “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime,” “Ruthless,” and “Yellow Boat” are now off limits.

"As parents of children actively participating in the Fine Arts programs of Keller ISD, we are alarmed by the sudden increase in censorship of the theatre departments across the district," the petition reads.

Other high schools have performed these plays, including “Yellow Boat,” as recently as this month. The play involves a child with hemophilia who contracts AIDS after a medically necessary blood transfusion. Cary High School in North Carolina presented the show last weekend. In Texas, Royal ISD, west of Houston, produced it in 2020.

Last fall, Legacy High School in Mansfield ISD put on “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, based on the book about an autistic boy who looks into the death of a neighbor’s dog.

A senior in Keller ISD, Nathan Beets, wrote on the change.org petition that "theater can have a profound effect on its audience. We can’t do that if we are censored from portraying real-life stories on stage; stories that people may find uncomfortable to talk about, but are best conveyed through art."

Earlier this year, Keller ISD was accused of censorship when it cancelled “The Laramie Project,” a play about the murder of Matthew Shepard, a gay college student in Wyoming. After public pushback, the district reversed its controversial decision and the play was produced.

Keller ISD’s website says the district’s fine arts program is among “the finest in the nation.” It lists among key values “respect for the diversity of our school community through a culture of understanding and personalized learning opportunities.”

KERA contacted Keller ISD for comment about the policy but hasn’t received a response.

Bill Zeeble is KERA’s education reporter. Got a tip? Email Bill at bzeeble@kera.org. You can follow him on X @bzeeble.

KERA News is made possible through the generosity of our members. If you find this reporting valuable, consider making a tax-deductible gift today. Thank you.

Bill Zeeble has been a full-time reporter at KERA since 1992, covering everything from medicine to the Mavericks and education to environmental issues.