Deborah Puette began her career on the stages of Chicago, where she made her professional debut in the lead role of the world premiere of Rebecca Gilman's "The Glory of Living". The play, a critical smash that topped all of the major critic's lists for the year, was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize. Ms. Puette's performance received rave reviews across the board, and she was awarded the Joseph Jefferson Citation, Chicago's most distinguished acting award, for her portrayal of an abused teenager turned serial killer. That same year she was profiled in Chiago's trade, PerformInk, as "a young actress to watch". Those successes led directly to leads in "Toys in the Attic", "Bus Stop" and "The Skin of Our Teeth", all at the acclaimed American Theatre Company. Diverse roles at Famous Door and Mary-Arrchie Theatre followed, as well as roles in film and television including "Lawrence Melm", directed by Steve Conrad, and "Cupid" opposite Jeremy Piven.
Since moving to Los Angeles, Ms. Puette has continued to work both on stage and in front of the camera. Within two months of arriving in L.A., she was working on Lifetime's hospital drama Strong Medicine, followed quickly by her L.A. stage debut in which she portrayed the lead in the West Coast premiere of Theresa Rebeck's Abstract Expression with Chautauqua Theatre Alliance. Other credits include "7 MET Shorts" and "The Great Writers Series", a project whose cast also included Ed Harris, Dermot Mulroney, Shirley Knight and Julianna Margulies. She most recently starred opposite Alfred Molina in the staged reading of Jonathan Lynn's dark comedy "The Bottome Line" at the Matrix Theatre. Upcoming films include the lead in the psychological thriller "Repose", the post-apocalyptic musical "Sacrifice", a starring role opposite Mark Feuerstein in "Lucid", and "Oblivion, Nebraska" with Gil Bellows.
Ms. Puette is represented theatrically by Robert Enriquez at Red Baron Management and commercially by Carrie Johnson at Mitchell K. Stubbs. She is a member of Screen Actors Guild and Actors' Equity Association. She resides in North Hollywood with her partner, actor-director Mark St. Amant and their five-year-old son, Wyatt Finn.
