“Live and let live” was a line from the play “The Laramie Project” that mirrored the emotions of everyone sitting in the audience.

A cast of NIU students participated in the production Sunday night at the Stevens Building’s Corner Theatre. It left the audience on the edge of their seats, with a few in tears.

The play was based on a true story from Laramie, Wyo., where Matthew Shepard, a 21-year-old homosexual male, was beaten, tied to a fence and left to die.

The play was merciless and told the story from the perspectives of the people who lived in Laramie. The actors portrayed the individuals who knew Matthew. Through the actors, the audience heard from Matthew’s friends, teachers, parents and the one’s who didn’t like him.

“The play is actual testimony from all those people in Laramie,” director Patricia Ridge said.

The entire play and script was taken from conversations with individuals from Laramie.

“I felt it was a universal message,” Ridge said. “This campus, as much as any other campus, needs to hear it.”

The play has no set. Lights and hand-held props were the only things used to portray its message. There was not an elaborate set for the play because the script was aimed to create a set in the minds of audience members. The play tried to put people directly in Laramie.

One of the quotes from the play was, “Laramie is a town defined by an accident, a crime.” Following the beating, the majority of Americans who knew of Laramie know about the incident. Before going to see this play, Matthew Shepard was just a name for many, but after afterward, it was easier to think of him as a person.

“People don’t know their tolerance level until they’re faced with someone who is different,” Ridge said. “That’s when they’re tested.”

After seeing a play with this kind of message, what can students walk away with?

“Just the experience of what we go through when we’re intolerant,” Ridge said. “This was a human being.”

The students who went to see the show were touched and moved. Several individuals were crying and hugging each other while exiting. The story had a better effect when being delivered in a play form versus the sensationalized view of the media at that time.

“I’m a theater major so I came to all the shows,” senior Jennifer Hylassaid. “I thought it was an excellent performance. It was excellent and it was powerful.”

One particular quote from the play reflected the way that several of the actors felt about doing the project.

“We’re a group of people bringing forth a message of peace and love and compassion,” one cast member said during the play.

Joseph Minoso, who is a second-year master’s candidate for fine arts, played six different characters in the play.

“I was completely honored and thrilled and overwhelmed to be working with such wonderful people and a wonderful director,” he said. “The script was amazing and delivers such a beautiful message.”

Other participants agreed.

“It was really a privilege to work in a show with this kind of message,” said Deborah Robertson, associate professor and member of the performance faculty in the School of Theater and Dance.

The end of the play received a standing ovation for the actors and the director who tried to capture the emotion and place it directly in the hearts of the onlookers.