The Chicago engagement, which began May 6, is the first stop on the national tour of the hit Off-Broadway production. It will continue through June 15.
Buyer & Cellar officially opened Off-Broadway June 24, 2013, after previews that began June 18 at the Barrow Street Theatre, where it continues to run.
Urie ("Ugly Betty," Angels in America, The Temperamentals) created the role of Alex, an out-of-work actor who lands a gig working in Barbra Streisand's basement. The Off-Broadway production currently features Christopher J. Hanke. Barrett Foa will take over in that production May 27.
Tour engagements for Buyer & Cellar follow: Chicago, IL (through June 15 at the Broadway Playhouse at Water Tower Place); Washington, D.C. (June 20-29 at the Harman Center for the Arts); Los Angeles, CA (July 9-Aug. 17 at the Mark Taper Forum); San Francisco, CA (Aug. 19-31 at the Curran Theatre). A Toronto engagement, scheduled for Nov. 12-30, will play the Panasonic Theatre. Casting for the Canadian premiere has not been determined.
Stephen Brackett directs the production, which is billed this way: "Alex More has a story to tell. A struggling actor in L.A., he takes a job working in the Malibu basement of a beloved mega-superstar. One day, the Lady Herself comes downstairs to play. It feels like real bonding in the basement, but will their relationship ever make it upstairs? Buyer & Cellar is an outrageous comedy about the price of fame, the cost of things, and the oddest of odd jobs."
Tolins is perhaps best known as the playwright of The Twilight of the Golds (Broadway), If Memory Serves (Promenade Theater), The Last Sunday in June (Rattlestick and Century Center) and Secrets of the Trade (Primary Stages). He co-wrote the films "The Twilight of the Golds" and "Martian Child." He was a consulting producer on the recent CBS comedy "Partners" and was a co-producer on the first season of "Queer As Folk" on Showtime.
Urie's New York theatre credits include How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (Broadway), The Cherry Orchard (Classic Stage Company), Angels in America (Signature), The Temperamentals (Lucille Lortel, Drama Desk, and Theatre World Awards, Drama League nomination), The Revenger's Tragedy (Red Bull) and Another Vermeer (HB Playwrights). He is widely known for TV's "Partners" and as Marc St. James on "Ugly Betty."
The set design for Buyer & Cellar is by Andrew Boyce; costume design is by Jessica Pabst; lighting design is by Eric Southern; sound design is by Stowe Nelson.
Visit buyerandcellar.com.
Here's a look at the show:
