Canadian World Traveller Fallr 2016 issue Canadian World Traveller Fall 2016 issue | 页面 32

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Broadway’s Best
“Waitress” serves up all the ingredients for a great show
by Mike Cohen, Photography: Joan Marcus

T

here are many reasons to go to New
York City, but the extraordinary
selection of Broadway productions
heads the list.
Waitress is a musical based on the 2007
cult Indie movie starring Keri Russell, showing at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre (256
West 47th Street, between Broadway and
Eighth Avenue).
The storyline revolves around Jenna
(Mueller), a waitress and expert pie maker
stuck in a small town and a loveless marriage. Faced with an unexpected pregnancy, she fears she may have to abandon the
dream of opening her own pie shop forever… until a baking contest in a nearby
county and the town’s handsome new doctor offer her a tempting recipe for happiness. Supported by her quirky crew of fellow waitresses and loyal customers, she
summons the secret ingredient she’s been
missing all along – courage.
Even before seeing this show, I knew that it
was full of promising ingredients. The
catchy music and lyrics were written by fivetime Grammy Award-nominated singer
songwriter Sara Bareilles and the direction
was done by Tony Award-winner Diane
Paulus.

Canadian World Traveller / Fall 2016

Yes, the show will make you hungry for pie.
The delicious-looking pies on both sides of
the stage, featured in tall glass freezers,
along with the ones integrated into the
story, will make you hungry enough to buy
some pie from the vendors. Each pie is sold
in a small jar at $10 each with the phrase
“it only takes a taste,” also the title of a
song from the show, written on top.
While pie is prominently featured, the real
star is Jessie Mueller, winner of the 2014
Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical. Mueller
elevates an already excellent show with the
quality of her performance, for which she
was nominated for a Tony Award this year.
Mueller is nothing short than fabulous to
watch. When I saw the movie Waitress, it
reminded me of the movie Alice Doesn`t
Live Here Anymore and the TV show Alice.
This is likely because at the diner where she
works, Jenna, like Alice, has two interesting
co-workers. Becky (Keala Settle) is strong
and full of funny quips.
Dawn (Kimiko Glenn from the popular
Netflix series Orange is the New Black) is
an awkward girl who unexpectedly finds
love with an odd man named Ogie, played
hilariously by Christopher Fitzgerald. He
won a Drama Desk Award and was nomi-

nated for a Tony for his performance,
including his show stopping number
“Never Ever Getting Rid of Me.”
Another standout is Drew Gehling, who
plays Dr. Pomatter. His affair with Jenna is
scandalous and hilarious to watch, in part
due to his superb comedic timing.
From the moment the curtain rises, when
Mueller belts out the fabulous and catchy
song “Opening Up,” you are immediately
hooked. Having seen the movie, I wondered how they would adjust the storyline
to include music. Well, songwriter Bareilles
did a magnificent job. The show is two and
a half hours, with intermission, and it rolls
by quickly.
Producers have announced a national tour
of the show will kick off at Cleveland's
Playhouse Square in October 2017.

wwww.waitressthemusical.com