During my travels in the theater district last week, I had occasion to walk past the marquee of a new show, Waitress. The ticket lines outside were long, the crowd seemed enthusiastic, and the posters were cute. I made a mental note to look into  it further (and promptly forgot about it). Then yesterday, someone mentioned they got tickets to see the preview, and I finally remembered to look it up. Am I ever glad I did!

Waitress is the new Broadway musical with music and lyrics by Sara Bareilles and starring Tony award winner Jessie Mueller (who originated the role of Carole King in Beautiful, the Carole King Musical). The music is bouncy and cheery and catchy as hell, and I think you’re going to like it!

It should also be mentioned that the show features an all-female creative team. In addition to the music by Bareilles, the lineup includes a story by Jessie Nelson (I Am Sam, Corina, Corina), direction by  Diane Paulus (Pippin, Finding Neverland), and choreography by Lorin Latarro (Curious Incident, Waiting for Godot). Based upon the movie written by Adrienne Shelly, the musical is produced by Fran Weissler and Elayne Herrick (along with their husbands).

The only video I could find of the cast are a few no-set, no costume previews, but they’re a great taste of what’s to come! Previews open on March 25, and I’m sure it’s going to be a success.

EPILOGUE: 5/5/16 We saw the show tonight, and it was so much fun! I strongly recommend it to anyone who can get there. Jessie Mueller’s voice is transcendent, and Sara Bareilles’s music is absolutely magnificent. All the performers were really top notch. A spectacular production all around!

Happily, the show’s website has a few recordings of Bareilles performing selections from Waitress, so we can still hear the score the way it’s meant to be performed (as opposed to in a church basement or wherever those videos above were recorded)!