Nick Offerman, Lea DeLaria, Kate Rockwell & More to Lead A CONFEDERACY OF DUNCES Industry Reading

Producers Bob Guza and John Hardy of Shelton Street announced today the first industry-only reading of A Confederacy of Dunces based on the best-selling and Pulitzer Prize winning novel by John Kennedy Toole. As plans move forward towards a Broadway production, the invited reading will take place on Monday, April 28th in New York City.

The cast for the reading, which will be directed by David Esbjornson will be headed by Nick Offerman as Ignatius J. Reilly and will include Danielle Skaarstad, Will Jackson Harper, Marylouise Burke, Lea DeLaria, Kate Rockwell and David Turner. The play has been adapted by Jeffrey Hatcher.

A CONFEDERACY OF DUNCES, written by Toole and published posthumously by LSU Press in 1980 , tells the story of Ignatius J. Reilly, his exploits, misadventures and all-around insultingly brilliant behavior in 1960's New Orleans.

Final casting will be announced shortly.

Nick Offerman got his start in the Chicago theater community, where he was a founding member of the Defiant Theatre. He worked extensively at Steppenwolf, The Goodman, Wisdom Bridge and Pegasus Players, among many others. Off Broadway credits include Adding Machine at The Minetta Lane Theater. Television credits include Parks and Recreation, Children's Hospital, Will & Grace, Deadwood, George Lopez, ER, American Body Shop and 24. Films include Casa De Mi Padre, 21 Jump Street, All Good Things, Men Who Stare at Goats, Somebody Up There Likes Me and Harmony and Me. Coming soon are The Kings of Summer and We're The Millers. October 2013 saw the release of Nick's first book, Paddle Your Own Canoe: One Man's Fundamentals for Delicious Living, from E.P. Dutton Books. Nick also enjoys making things out of wood in his Los Angeles workshop.