Stritch, Plimpton and Cavanagh Read White's Lies at Snapple Center in NYC

By Adam Hetrick
September 24, 2009

Tony and Emmy-winning stage veteran Elaine Stritch leads the private reading of Ben Andron's White's Lies in Manhattan Sept. 24.

Bob Cline directs the private 3 PM reading of the work that stars Tom Cavanagh (Some Americans Abroad, Urinetown, "Ed") as Joe White, with Stritch (At Liberty, Company, Showboat) as his mother.

The reading also features three-time Tony nominee Martha Plimpton (Pal Joey, Coast of Utopia, Top Girls), Christy Carlson Romano (Beauty and the Beast), Jimmy Bennett (Illyria), Jason Kravits (The Drowsy Chaperone) and Rena Strober (Fiddler on the Roof).

"Joe White's got it all," according to press notes. "He's handsome, he's charming, he's got a great career and a killer smile that manages to land him a different girl every night. But all that changes when his mother drops a bombshell on him: she's got cancer and her dying wish is to have a grandchild. With his bachelorhood threatened, Joe is faced with a choice. He could give up his womanizing ways and find a nice girl to settle down and have kids with... OR... he could convince his bitter, angry ex-girlfriend from college – who just happens to have a daughter in her early twenties – to pretend that her daughter is his daughter. As their tangled web of lies unravels, Joe and company find themselves on a hilarious journey full of unexpected twists and turns that will have you looking at cancer and commitment in a whole new way!"

Aaron Grant and Kelvin Productions produce the reading at the Snapple Theatre Center. Producer Grant previously told Playbill.com that Andron penned the role with Stritch in mind, and producers are currently aiming for a spring 2010 Off-Broadway premiere. No casting or dates of production for the Off-Broadway run have been announced.

For further information e-mail whiteslies@kelvinproductions.com.