When Oregon playwright William S. Gregory (known to all as Sam) passed away of heart failure last year at 55, he left behind on his laptop scripts for more than 60 plays.  Most had never been produced, or even read outside of a close circle of supporters.  Sam had enjoyed a major hit in Portland 25 years earlier when CoHo Productions premiered his Mary Tudor.  This spellbinding drama about Henry VIII’s elder daughter played to sell-out crowds and rave reviews, then captured Drammy Awards for new work, directing, and ensemble acting.  CoHo went on to produce two other plays by Sam in subsequent seasons, and a few of his other scripts were the subject of workshops or public readings.  But the vast majority of plays on Sam’s computer were essentially unknown at the time of his death.

A small group of Sam’s friends and artistic collaborators has been sifting through this trove and has uncovered some true treasures.  A selection of these until now undiscovered works, together with Mary Tudor, will be presented at “SamFest,” a series of staged readings at CoHo Theater January 2 – February 1, 2026.  The purpose of SamFest is to bring to the attention of audiences in Portland, and beyond, the work of a singularly talented writer whose rich language and sharp wit recall Oscar Wilde, George Bernard Shaw, and even Shakespeare – all of whom, by happy coincidence, appear as characters within plays featured in the series.

Sam embraced the classics during a period when these foundational works of Western civilization had fallen out of favor with arts funders. Many of his plays are set in eras of long ago, in particular Renaissance and early modern Europe and ancient Greece and Rome. Yet in his hands, these distant times come alive thanks to beautifully crafted dialogue that evokes a bygone age but is thoroughly accessible to a contemporary audience, as well as penetrating insight that mines history for themes that remain strikingly relevant today.  Sam was also a gifted poet whose scripts often incorporate verse in ways both playful and solemn.

Sam was a keen observer of the here and now as well. SamFest will feature several hilarious comedies spotlighting facets and foibles of our present day or recent past. Above all, he was a bold dramatist, venturing wherever his boundless curiosity led him and unafraid of tackling touchy topics and controversial characters.

The group staging SamFest, Talk Soon Productions, includes members whose friendship with Sam dates back to his school days.  “Talk Soon” was Sam’s trademark email sign-off.  One of those members, Maggie Hadley, has come full circle.  Maggie, who will direct the reading of It's Brilliant Here, recalls that Sam was the first person ever to direct her in a play when they were both high school students in Eugene. She marvels at his ability to engage both with people he'd just met and figures from long ago he'd never met: "I don't think there was any human throughout time who didn't interest Sam."

Talk Soon co-chair Toni Lima met Sam in college at Southern Oregon State. “When we reconnected fifteen years later in Portland, our friendship deepened into something very sibling-like. His humor, empathy, and unflinching insight into the human spirit—every side of it—shine through in his plays and writing, and they continue to surprise and move me. He was one of my most very favorite people.”