AMERICAN WEE-PIE Makes Pacific Northwest Premiere at Seattle Public Theater Tonight

Seattle Public Theater (SPT) will present the Pacific Northwest premiere of Lisa Dillman's American Wee-Pie, a sweetly melancholic comedy about economic recession, career second acts, and the life-altering power of the savory things in life, namely, cupcakes.

ABOUT AMERICAN WEE-PIE: Zed (Evan Whitfield), a disgruntled thirty-something textbook editor, returns to his dead end hometown for his mother's funeral. He encounters Linz (Tracy Leigh), a rambunctious former high school classmate who introduces him to the magical world of boutique bakeries. Zed's life is instantly transformed from dreary grammar technician to creator of iconic gourmet cupcakes. Directed by Anita Montgomery, 2013 Gregory Award Nominee for Best Director, and featuring a cast and design staff as dynamic as a Swedish pear and Wasabi cupcake, American Wee-Pie is a tasty new comedy packed with social commentary and spicy sweetness.

"I fell in love with American Wee-Pie's enormous beating heart," says director Anita Montgomery, "and its sense of hope and belief in our ability to rebound after fate smacks us down and seems to rob us of the tools we need to navigate this thing called life. In the face of our increasingly super-sized, corporatized, homogenized everything, this play celebrates the unique, off-kilter, and unpredictable beauty of a tiny, good thing."

Originally commissioned and developed as part of the prestigious Goodman Playwrights Unit in 2010-2011, American Wee-Pie was workshopped at PlayPenn Conference in Philadelphia, ACT Theatre in Seattle, and at the William Inge Center for the Arts in Independence, Kansas. Following a sold-out run at Chicago's Rivendell Theatre Ensemble,American Wee-Pie was nominated for the 2013 Joseph Jefferson Award for Best New Work.

American Wee-Pie features the acting talents of Stephen Grenley (Taproot's The Matchmaker and Jeeves in Bloom), David Goldstein (BalaganTheatre's August: Osage County and Book-It's Jesus' Son), Alyssa Keene (SCT's Pippi Longstocking: The Family Musical and STC's The Wild Party), Tracy Leigh (Annex Theatre's Team of Heroes Trilogy and Kittens in a Cage), and 2013 Gregory Award Nominee for Outstanding Actor, Evan Whitfield (Book-It's The Financial Lives of the Poets and Jesus' Son).

American Wee-Pie boasts a multi-talented design staff with Set Design by Andrea Bush (Book-It's Cider House Rules and WET's Love Horse), Properties Design by Mari Cannon, Costume Design by Candace Frank (STC's The Wild Party and ACT's Ham for the Holidays), Lighting Design by Tim Wratten (SPT's Language Archive andSuperior Donuts), and Music Composition and Sound Design by 2013 Gregory Award Winner, Robertson Witmer.

Lisa Dillman's American Wee-Pie previews January 23rd with performances running from January 24th to February 16, 2014. Tickets may be purchased by phone at (206) 524-1300 or online at www.seattlepublictheater.org.

Seattle Public Theater (SPT) is a mid-size, 501 (c) (3) non-profit professional theater on the shores of Green Lake. Specializing in main stagetheater and youth theater education, SPT is dedicated to inspiring community through intimate, powerful professional theater and dynamic education programs.

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