The Whidbey Playhouse will put on a production of “The Laramie Project” early next year after the Oak Harbor High School principal denied student thespians’ request to perform the show at the high school.

At a meeting last month, the playhouse board of directors agreed to take on the play, which tells the story of Matthew Shepard, an openly gay University of Wyoming student who was brutally murdered in 1998.

Members of the Oak Harbor High School drama club first became aware of the play when they saw a cutting of it at the Washington State Thespian Festival at Western Washington University in March. Students were deeply moved by the performance, and drama club officers voted to perform the play at the high school during the upcoming school year.

High school Principal Nathan Salisbury, however, vetoed the production, saying in a statement that the school selects plays for the drama students to perform that are “balanced and representative of the student voice” and “age and school appropriate.”

“The Laramie Project” has been performed at high schools across the country, including several in Washington state. Oak Harbor High School has in recent years put on plays containing strong language and dark or violent content.

Matt Montoya, recently elected vice president of the playhouse board of directors, said he feels the school rejecting “The Laramie Project” is a missed opportunity to help a marginalized group of students feel seen.

“It is a story not only about a heinous, inexplicable crime, but also a story that provokes thought about life and values centered around being gay in a small, rural community, much like Oak Harbor,” he said. “I think that we all could learn something new from this production.”

Impressed by the student advocates who fought for the play and even took their case to the school board, Montoya decided to sponsor a production of the show at the playhouse.

The off-season performance will run March 8, 9 and 10, 2024, between productions of “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” and “Cash on Delivery.” The show will be largely student run, with drama club students making up the cast and crew.

Tickets will cost $15, and the proceeds will be split between the playhouse scholarship fund and The Trevor Project, a nonprofit organization that provides crisis support services to LGBTQ+ youth.

Playhouse board President Allenda Jenkins said the nonprofit theater decided to put on the show because it aligns with the playhouse’s mission to inspire, enrich, educate and entertain the community.

“‘The Laramie Project’ shines light on the challenges of LGBTQ youth,” Jenkins wrote in a statement. “The play gives opportunity for reflection on the rise of hatred and need for compassion in communities.”

In an interview, drama club President Eclipse Garrett expressed gratitude to the playhouse for picking up the show, as well as lingering disappointment in the principal’s decision not to produce it.

“We felt and still feel that we are being censored,” Garrett said.

After pleading their case for “The Laramie Project” before the school board and receiving no response from the board during a May meeting, Garrett and fellow student Grace Jones were invited to meet with Superintendent Michelle Kuss-Cybula and Assistant Superintendent Dwight Lundstrom, according to Garrett.

Garrett said that while Kuss-Cybula and Lundstrom told the students they were unable to overturn the principal’s decision, they were open to suggestions about how to improve education surrounding LGBTQ+ individuals.

Garrett added that this education matters because LGBTQ+ students still experience harassment at school.

“We’re being called slurs in the hallways by our classmates,” Garrett said. “There’s all of these microaggressions, and people have reported them, and nothing happens.”

The district said in a statement that it “prioritizes fostering a dialogue that promotes healthy and safe learning environments for each and every student” and works to cultivate positive school cultures through student input.

The statement further reads that harassment, intimidation and bullying are against district policy, and all reports of bullying or harassment are thoroughly investigated by administrators.