Not everyone realizes the extent of playwright talent that exists in the Tampa Bay area. But a play-reading series at Straz Center is trying to change that and inviting local talent into the light.
The Straz Center for the Performing Arts in Tampa opens its new BIPOC Play-Reading Series at 2:30 p.m. Feb. 20. This series is part of an effort to be more inclusive and diversify artistic offerings at The Straz. BIPOC stands for Black, Indigenous and People-of-Color.
BIPOC Play-Reading will be a four-part Sunday series. Other dates include March 27, April 24 and May 15. The series is free to the public, though reservations are required.
Bringing history to life
Patrons will hear excerpts from plays written by both local and national writers. Local, professional actors will read the parts. Auditions are open now for the March and April shows for interested actors.
The first play is Lorraine, written by St. Petersburg playwrights Melvin and Marvin Coleman. It depicts the last year of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life and centers on the Lorraine Motel, where he died.
The play calls on the voices of celebrities who lived near the Lorraine or stayed there, including Tina Turner, Richard Prior and Isaac Hayes. Others in King’s life are also given the nod.
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The whole play reading series was the idea of Matthew Belopavlovich, the theater department artistic director for the Patel Conservatory, which is part of The Straz. Belopavlovich teaches youth theater and manages curriculum at the Patel Conservatory. He got the idea for the series from a play reading he experienced while in graduate school.
“I knew I had to bring this up and talk about how we might be able to host a play reading and give our students, families and the general public access to playwrights they might not see on our stages right now,” he said.
“We started talking about who we knew that could bring in this material to feature local playwrights that need more platforms to get their work out and also to focus on some of the classics where our students may not have been exposed to them.”
Finding local talent
Belopavlovich and his teammates are slowly discovering that the world of playwrighting is quite robust in this region.
Alvaro Saar Rios, a playwright who focuses on his Mexican roots and whose wife was Belopavlovich’s voice professor, has spoken with the Patel Conservatory and some of his work has been used in competitions here. He said there is definitely a disconnect in new playwrights being able to find places where they can have readings and present their work. Belopavlovich adds, “Not only is this series about exposure, but it provides a platform for new works.”
A play written by Rios and his son, Augosto Rios, will be part of the performance on March 27. It is called Pandemic Kickball. It’s about Augosto’s time returning to school after the COVID-19 lockdown. Rios will also feature his performance of History of Mexicans in 10 Minutes.
“We are doing this through a variety of ways,” Belopavlovich said. “Some of the playwrights are offering their work free and for others, we are getting licensing.”
A variety of voices
On April 24, the BIPOC Playing-Reading will focus on the works of August Wilson, author of Fences and Seven Guitars and the works of Lorraine Hansberry, author of Raisin in the Sun.
Then, on May 15, BIPOC will feature the work of Asian American playwright Scott Sickles, who is based in New York. “We will feature one of his works, but we are not sure which one yet, since he has such a plethora to choose from,” Belopavlovich said.
“I have full belief and we have every intention of doing this every year and tapping other playwrights that are local, once they know this exists,” he said. “We hope they will gravitate toward this opportunity as an actor or as a playwright. We want to make it as diverse as possible.”
Belopavlovich said he is not 100% sure how much talent is right here in this area. “But this is definitely an open door. We are very flexible with what it is. That is where everything has to start.”
“It’s an idea, an open door, a welcoming,” he said. “Who would like to be a part of it?”
Performances will take place in The Straz’s TECO Theater. And each performance will have a question-and-answer period during which the writers and actors can provide some insight into the creative process.
You can reserve your seat on The Straz website or by calling 813-229-7827.