Richard Kline Takes Over the Diner as Joe in WAITRESS on Tour

Joe's Pie Diner will be Opening Up with Richard Kline in the role of 'Joe' on December 14th when the tour is in Spokane, WA at First Interstate Center for the Arts. Waitress is the hit Broadway musical from Grammy nominee Sara Bareilles inspired by Adrienne Shelly's 2007 motion picture.

Kline most recently appeared in the Broadway bound musical The Sting, with Harry Connick, Jr. Millions of TV watchers know him as 'Larry' Jack Tripper's best friend on the classic sitcom "Three's Company." Broadway debut: City of Angels; Film debut: Barry Levinson's Liberty Heights; Television debut: "The Mary Tyler Moore Show." He toured for over a year as The Wizard in Wicked. He has performed his solo show Boychik at New York's Theatre Four and at many venues throughout the United States.

After serving as a lieutenant in Vietnam, Richard made his professional debut at the prestigious Lincoln Center Repertory Company in 1971. Regional theatre credits include Other Desert Cities, Death of A Salesman, the title role in Henry V at The Folger Shakespeare Theater. Richard has appeared in the musicals Spamalot, They're Playing Our Song, Do I Hear A Waltz?, Company, The Rothschilds, and Hello Again. In the American premiere of Andrew Lloyd Weber's By Jeeves, he played Jeeves both at the Godspeed Opera and The Kennedy Center. He has done 7 plays of Neil Simon including The Sunshine Boys and Jake's Women. Among his many television credits are "The Americans," "Bluebloods," "Gilmore Girls," "Judging Amy," "That 70's Show," "NYPD Blue," "Dream On" and "LA Law."

As a director, Richard won the LA Drama Critics Circle Award for his direction of Noel Coward's Present Laughter. He has directed Bruce Davison, Burt Reynolds and Billy Connolly in their television series. Other directing credits include Rumors (with Bernie Koppel), Rough Crossing, The Great Sebastians, Breaking Legs (with Pat Harrington), and the Theatre League tour of Leader of the Pack...with Sha Na Nah.

The Waitress cast also includes Christine Dwyer (Finding Neverland, Wicked, Rent) as Jenna, Jessie Shelton (Hadestown, Party in the USA) as Dawn, Maiesha McQueen (Waitress, The Color Purple) as Becky, Steven Good (Escape to Margaritaville) as Dr. Pomatter, Ryan G. Dunkin ("Bull") as Cal, Matt DeAngelis (Hair, American Idiot, Once) as Earl, Richard Kline (The Sting, Wicked) as Joe and Jeremy Morse(Waitress) as Ogie.

The ensemble includes Rheaume Crenshaw, David Hughey, Kolby Kindle, Emily Koch, Adam J. Levy, Tatiana Lofton, Gerianne Pérez, Brad Standley, Grace Stockdale, Alex Tripp and Kevin Zak.

Brought to life by a groundbreaking all-female creative team, this irresistible new hit features original music and lyrics by 6-time Grammy® nominee Sara Bareilles ("Brave," "Love Song"), a book by acclaimed screenwriter Jessie Nelson (I Am Sam), choreography by Lorin Latarro (Les Liaisons Dangereuses, Waiting for Godot) and direction by Tony Award® winner Diane Paulus (Hair, Pippin, Finding Neverland).

Inspired by Adrienne Shelly's beloved film, Waitress tells the story of Jenna - a Waitress and expert pie maker, Jenna dreams of a way out of her small town and loveless marriage. A baking contest in a nearby county and the town's new doctor may offer her a chance at a fresh start, while her fellow Waitresses offer their own recipes for happiness. But Jenna must summon the strength and courage to rebuild her own life.

For more tour information, please visit http://waitressthemusical.com