George Street Playhouse Streams Play Based on Bestselling Book

New Brunswick, NJ - Imagine taking on an advice column that causes you to reflect on your own personal experiences to answer. It doesn’t pay in money, but you are helping people heal, and in turn, you are healing.

Tiny Beautiful Things is just that. Based on the best-selling novel, Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar, Laiona Michelle steps into Cheryl Strayed’s shoes as Sugar.

Joining Michelle in the cast are George Street Playhouse veterans John Bolger, Kally Duling and Ryan George, who play a multitude of characters seeking advice from Sugar about personal issues.

Michelle said, “It has really been satisfying to dive back into my craft as an actress. I'm also incredibly inspired by the writing style of Cheryl Strayed. She's such a beautiful storyteller. … Her writing really spoke to me and I found her advice to be so honest and necessary.”

The topics of the letters range from relationship questions to how to grieve. There are emotionally jarring moments, but there are also lighthearted moments. Filmed on location instead of a stage, under the direction of artistic director David Saint, the fantastic four provokes a range of emotions within 90 minutes. Moving from letter to letter, Sugar gives her readers a small piece of herself with each raw and honest answer.

“I think that this show is for everybody, you know. We've all shared, universally, so much during this season of COVID and Black Lives Matter and watching our country fall apart and be put back together again. So to be able to share in a piece like this where there's so much healing and acceptance and forgiveness, you know, those words just jump to my mind when I think about this piece and we all have the power to do this.”

This March made one year since George Street Playhouse performed on stage. It’s also been one year for Michelle, too. She said it was invigorating to be with amazing actors and an incredible director in Saint, in a show she called food for her soul.

With each letter and scene change, the original music from composer Scott Killian, and costume design from Lisa Zinni, adds another layer of depth. Given some of the subject matter of the letters, this show is recommended for mature audiences.

Tiny Beautiful Things is available to stream from May 4 to May 23. Tickets are available for $33 per household. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit www.georgestreetplayhouse.org.