Actresses have the floor for HBO's Hill comedy

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Meet "The Washingtoniennes."

Rachael Taylor, Amanda Walsh and "quarterlife" star Bitsie Tulloch have landed the female leads in HBO's comedy pilot from "Sex and the City" star Sarah Jessica Parker.

Based on the semi-autobiographical book by Jessica Cutler about the sexploits of a low-level female congressional staffer with powerful men on Capitol Hill, "Washingtonienne" revolves around the professional and personal lives of three smart, sophisticated 28-year-old girls working on the Hill.

At the center is Jackie (Taylor), a recent transplant from New York who has decided to pursue a career as a speechwriter but first must work her way up from the intern desk.

Her mentor in the ways of Washington is her old college friend April (Tulloch), who has been on the Hill since graduation and lives a prematurely middle-age lifestyle with a boyfriend who seems more in love with his flashy senator boss than with her.

And finally there's Laura (Walsh), a small-town girl whose workaholic ways often come at the expense of a social life and who is constantly defending her Republican views to her liberal friends.

Also cast in the pilot is David Furr as April's boyfriend Tom, an aide to a charismatic senator.

Susanna Fogel and Joni Lefkowitz penned the script for "Washingtonienne" and are exec producing with Parker, Sarah Condon and Stacy Taub.

Canadian-born Walsh's credits include "Disturbia" and ABC's "Sons & Daughters." Australian native Taylor appeared in "Transformers," while Tulloch is best known for her roles on the Web series "quarterlife" and "lonelygirl15."

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter