Gonzaga guard Steven Gray is primed for a big season on the court, but before the first game is played, he'll be counted on to deliver command performances on the theater stage.
Gray is a member of the school theater arts program's production of William Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" and has been cast as Romeo's rival, Tybalt. Opening night is Oct. 22 -- one week after basketball practice kicks off with a Midnight Madness event.
It's not only role-playing, but getting the part involves some swordplay as well. Fortunately for Gray, taking center stage isn't an unfamiliar place. Making his theater debut last November, he played the lead role of a gay baseball player in "Take Me Out."
This year, he'll even apparently have some company with a teammate getting in on the act. According to The Spokesman-Review, sophomore forward Kelly Olynyk is also in the production.
Not that Gray, who has played in the same backcourt as Matt Bouldin in recent years, hasn't been used to sharing the spotlight. But with Bouldin gone, Gray is now the Zags' lone senior and second-leading returning scorer, averaging 13.6 points per game.
So for coach Mark Few's sake, and just in case, go easy on those calls for Gray to break a leg.