Michael Urie to Reprise Role in BUYER & CELLAR at Westport Country Playhouse; Will be Filmed for THIRTEEN!

The original Off-Broadway production of the critically acclaimed comedy "Buyer & Cellar" will take the stage of Westport Country Playhouse, June 14 - July 3. Michael Urie, who won the Drama Desk, Clarence Derwent, Lucille Lortel, and LA Drama Critics awards for originating the role of Alex More in the show, will reprise his tour de force performance. The Westport staging will be helmed by Stephen Brackett, who also directed the Off-Broadway show, as well as the original artistic team. The comedy is written by Jonathan Tolins, a resident of Fairfield, Connecticut.

New York's public television station THIRTEEN will tape a performance of "Buyer & Cellar" during its run at the Playhouse for later broadcast on "Theater Close-Up," the series that showcases Off-Broadway and regional not-for-profit, professional productions for Tri-state viewers.

Michael Urie is well known for the role of Marc St. James on the award-winning "Ugly Betty" television series. A two-time Drama Desk Award winner, he will host the 2016 Drama Desk Awards ceremony on Sunday, June 5.

Off-Broadway, in addition to portraying multiple characters in "Buyer & Cellar," Urie played iconic fashion designer Rudi Gernreich in "The Temperamentals," for which he received the Lucille Lortel, Drama Desk, and Theatre World awards. On Broadway, he took on the role of Bud Frump in "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying," opposite Nick Jonas and Beau Bridges. Urie was also in the Classic Stage Company's production of "The Cherry Orchard," Signature Theatre's revival of "Angels in America," and played opposite Patti LuPone in Lincoln Center Theater's world premiere of "Shows for Days."

In addition to "Ugly Betty," Urie's television credits include the role of Gavin Sinclair in "Modern Family," as well as "Partners," "The Good Wife," "Hot in Cleveland," "Younger," and "Workaholics." He currently hosts the Logo series, "Cocktails & Classics," and directs the web series, "What's Your Emergency."

Urie's films include "He's Way More Famous Than You," which he also directed; "Thank You for Judging," as co-director/executive producer; "Beverly Hills Chihuahua"; "WTC View"; "Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life"; "The Decoy Bride"; "Petunia"; "Such Good People"; "The Hyperglot," as director; and "Grantham & Rose," as executive producer. He is a graduate of Juilliard.

The comedy "Buyer & Cellar" is about a woman named Barbra who has a mall in the basement of her Mailbu mansion. Alex More, played by Urie, is a struggling L.A. actor who finds himself with the odd job of the mall's shopkeeper. He takes the audience on a rollercoaster ride of fame and friendship at the outer reaches of American celebrity.

Author Jonathan Tolins' plays, in addition to "Buyer & Cellar," are "The Twilight of the Golds," "If Memory Serves," "The Last Sunday in June," "Secrets of the Trade," and "The Forgotten Woman." He and his husband Robert Cary contributed additional material to the 2014 Broadway revival of "On the Town." His films are "The Twilight of the Golds" and "Martian Child," both co-written with Seth E. Bass. Television credits include "Queer as Folk," The Academy Awards, The Tony Awards, "Partners," "Grease Live!" (with Robert Cary), and "BrainDead." Tolins has written articles for Opera News, Time, and The Huffington Post, and is a panelist on the Metropolitan Opera Radio Quiz. He lives in Fairfield, Connecticut, with his husband and their children, Selina and Henry.

The original design and production team will reunite for the Westport production. They include Andrew Boyce, scenic design; Jessica Pabst, costume design; Eric Southern, lighting design; Stowe Nelson, sound design; Alex Basco Koch, projection design; Sam Pinkleton, musical staging; and Hannah Woodward, production stage manager.

The original Off-Broadway production was produced by Darren Bagert, Dan Shaheen, Ted Snowdon, Daryl Roth, Martin Massman, Pat Flicker Addiss, Doug Nevin, Joan Raffe and Jhett Tolentino, Andrew Tobias and Rattlestick Playwrights Theater; general management by DR Theatrical Management; associate produced by Matthew Masten.

"Buyer & Cellar" performance schedule is Tuesday at 7 p.m., Wednesday at 2 and 8 p.m., Thursday and Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday at 3 and 8 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m. Special series feature Taste of Tuesday, LGBT Night OUT, Opening Night, Sunday Symposium, Open Captions, Thursday TalkBack, Together at the Table Family Dinner, Playhouse Happy Hour, and Backstage Pass.

Production Sponsor is Joyce Hergenhan; Corporate Production Sponsor is Fidelity.

Single tickets start at $30; buy early for best prices.

For more information and to buy tickets, visit www.westportplayhouse.org or call the box office at (203) 227-4177, toll-free at 1-888-927-7529, or visit Westport Country Playhouse, 25 Powers Court, off Route 1, Westport.