The Laramie Project at Ford's Theater

The inside of the Ford's Theater

This past weekend I had the opportunity to FINALLY go check out Ford's Theater. Seeing this theater where President Lincoln was shot has been on my bucket list forever. So when I got invited to see a show, I jumped on it! Though thanks to the government shutdown, I almost didn't see the play there but in a church instead. Thankfully the government got their shit together and re-opened!

My GLOBE & Allies group went to see the Laramie Project play, the story of Matthew Shepard, the LGBT young adult who was brutally beaten in 1998. It was a very hard play to listen to and take in, but I'm very glad I did it. The theater was so small and intimate, its easy to see how a play might have gone down way back in the day. 

I was very curious as to why the Lincoln Theater was chosen for this play. I did some research and apparently this theater is promoting the "The Lincoln Legacy Project":

With malice toward none, with charity for all
The Lincoln Legacy Project
From Intolerance toward Equality

In Fall of 2011, Ford’s Theatre launched the Lincoln Legacy Project, a multi-year effort to create dialogue in our nation’s capital around the issues of tolerance, equality and acceptance. Each fall, through a series of cornerstone theatre productions, educational programs and special events, Ford’s takes a closer look at racial and religious intolerance, social injustice and civil rights in American history and contemporary society. Through a diversity of programming, the Lincoln Legacy Project is designed to encourage people of differing viewpoints to engage in meaningful and respectful dialogue about tolerance and understanding.

 That's the area where Lincoln was shot. Crazy how close it was to our seats! Someone who sat there that fateful night would have been able to see into that alcove and watch it all go down.

Me and my boys (with Abe photobombing us in the background!