Play Reading Features Chargers
Source/Author: Bill Leavengood, US Teacher
August 21, 2015
On August 10, American Stage Theatre hosted a reading of "A Superior Shakespeare", a new comedy by Shorecrest playwriting instructor and Class of '78 alumnus Bill Leavengood. Two sibling rivals and a pair of bumbling producers spar, plot and scheme when the brothers unearth an unknown Shakespearean tragedy and race to mount the Broadway premiere.
The cast of "A Superior Shakespeare" included a number of Shorecrest alumni including: James Wenz '14, Garrett Schulte '13, Lacey Nash Miller '00, Kyle Murphy '15, and Charles Reynolds '81. Following the reading, the delighted audience remained for a talkback, sharing feedback and suggestions for future productions.
Bill Leavengood is a two-time O’Neill playwright and alumus of Circle Repertory in New York. His Off-Broadway credits include "Special" on Theatre Row; "Little Mary" at the Sanford Meisner Theatre; "The Head" at the Chelsea Playhouse; "The Preservation Society", at Primary Stages; and "Florida Crackers", which premiered as part of Circle Repertory’s 20th Anniversary Season.
Leavengood is a faculty member of the department of Arts & Humanities in the Upper School at Shorecrest where he teaches playwriting and drama. In 2015, Shorecrest Thespian Troupe 3140 was invited to perform their fall musical production of "Anything Goes" for an audience of more than 2,500 in Morsani Hall at the Straz Center in Tampa. Shorecrest, known for its graduates' college placement, also has one of the top high school theatre programs in Pinellas County.