Producer Daryl Roth announced today that Michele Lee (Tale of the Allergist's Wife), Tony Award-winner Debra Monk (Curtains), Tracee Ellis Ross ("Girlfriends") and Casey Wilson ("Saturday Night Live") will join the rotating cast of Love, Loss and What I Wore. They join the show January 6 through January 31, 2009, alongside the returning Katie Finneran. Love, Loss, and What I Wore, an intimate collection of stories by Nora Ephron and Delia Ephron, directed by Karen Carpenter and based on the bestselling book by Ilene Beckerman, opened October 1, 2009 to rave reviews at The Westside Theatre (407 West 43 Street, NYC) and has been extended through March 2010.
It was also announced today that the December 16 - January 3 cast will include Lucy DeVito, Katie Finneran, Capathia Jenkins, Natasha Lyonne and Mary Louise.
Love, Loss, and What I Wore features a rotating cast of five women, who perform in four-week cycles. The current cast (through November 15) includes Mary Birdsong, Tyne Daly, Lisa Joyce, Jane Lynch and Mary Louise Wilson. The November 18 - December 13 cast includes Kristin Chenoweth, Lucy DeVito, Capathia Jenkins, Rhea Perlman and Rita Wilson.
Love, Loss, and What I Wore is based on Beckerman's popular book, as well as on the recollections of the Ephrons' friends. Like the book, Love, Loss, And What I Wore uses clothing and accessories and the memories they trigger to tell funny and often poignant stories that all women can relate to.
The complete design team for Love, Loss, and What I Wore includes Jo Winiarski (Scenic Design), Jessica Jahn (Costume Design), Jeff Croiter (Lighting Design), Walter Trarbach (Sound Design) and Maria Verel (Make-Up Design).
A portion of the production's proceeds will benefit Dress for Success, a charity that provides work clothing and job support for low-income women. Audience members are invited to donate their gently-used purses and other accessories in the theatre lobby.
Tickets ($75.00) are available via Telecharge.com (212-239-6200) and in-person at The Westside Theatre Box Office (407 West 43rd Street). The performance schedule is as follows: Wednesday and Saturday at 2 p.m. & 8 p.m., Thursday and Friday at 8 p.m., Sunday at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m.
Michele Lee is known worldwide for her Emmy-nominated role as Karen Mackenzie in the landmark CBS series "Knots Landing." She was discovered at the age of 17 by Broadway producer David Merrick, and achieved national recognition in How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying, which she later repeated on screen. In 1970 she played opposite Dean Jones in the Disney classic The Love Bug. Ms. Lee has starred in and produced numerous films for television including CBS's Emmy-nominated Big Dreams and Broken Hearts: The Dottie West Story. In 1996 Michele became the first woman to produce, direct, write, and star in a film for television with Color Me Perfect for the Lifetime Network. She was last seen in Along Came Polly opposite Ben Stiller and Jennifer Aniston. As a musical performer Stephen Holden of The New York Times says it best, "Once she's on the stage, it isn't enough to seduce or enlighten; the only goal worth pursuing is total conquest." Additionally, Ms. Lee won Tony nominations for her performances in the Broadway musical Seesaw and The Tale of The Allergist's Wife. Ms. Lee has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Debra Monk. Broadway: Curtains (Drama Desk Award, Tony nomination), Chicago; Reckless; Thou Shalt Not; Ah, Wilderness!; Steel Pier (Tony nomination); Company; Picnic (Tony nomination); Redwood Curtain (Tony Award); Nick and Nora; Prelude to a Kiss; Pump Boys and Dinettes (Co-Author, Tony Nomination). Off-Broadway: Show People, The Seagull, The Time of the Cuckoo (Obie Award), Death-Defying Acts, Three Hotels, Assassins, Oil City Symphony (Co-author, Drama Desk Award). Regional: Mrs. Miller Does Her Thing (Vineyard Playhouse), Three Hotels (Helen Hayes Award, Kennedy Center), The Huntington, The Ahmanson, Seattle Rep, Old Globe, Yale Rep, Bay Street, Actors Theater of Louisville, Williamstown. Film: The Great Buck Howard; The Savages; The Producers; Palindromes; Milwaukee, Minnesota; Center Stage; Devil's Advocate; In & Out; The Substance of Fire; Extreme Measures; The Bridges of Madison County; Jeffrey; Fearless; Prelude to a Kiss; Reckless; Mrs. Winterbourne; Bed of Roses and the upcoming Love and Other Impossible Pursuits. TV: "Ghost Whisperer," "The Closer," "Notes from the Underbelly," "Desperate Housewives," "Frasier," "The Music Man," "Eloise," "Law and Order," "Ellen Foster," "Redwood Curtain," "Nero Wolfe," Katie Sipowicz on "NYPD Blue" (Emmy Award), George's mother on "Grey's Anatomy," Ellen's mother on "Damages," and Will Schuester's mother on "Glee."
Tracee Ellis Ross is best known for her NAACAP Image Award winning role on "Girlfriends." Recent features include Labor Pains, HBO's Life Support with Queen Latifah, Tyler Perry's Daddy's Little Girls and Hanging Up. Previous TV credits include Lifetime's "The Dish," for which she was named a "Face to Watch" by the LA Times and MTV's "The Lyricist Lounge Show." Theatre credits include Los Angeles productions of What Would Jimi Do?, The Vagina Monologues and Blackout.
