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| Waitress |
As the lights come up on the comedy musical Waitress, three words play over and over: "sugar, butter, flour." By themselves, they are just ingredients on a shelf behind protagonist Jenna (Christine Dwyer). Like the title suggests, she is a waitress whose passion comes in making the most unique pies imaginable. To her sugar, butter, and flour are more than ingredients, they're a piece of her DNA, giving her solace when nothing else will. What's incredible about the Sara Bareilles-penned musical is not only that it has a rich sense of humor and enough baking to get the back row salivating, but it also has heart. The current production at the Segerstrom Theater in Coasta Mesa, CA does an excellent job of bringing the material to life with plenty of warmth for the passionate audience. It's a simple story about a woman with an unwanted pregnancy, but by the end it becomes so much more. The three ingredients may look unimpressive by themselves, but when cooked together they help make Waitress a delectable treat.
The majority of the story takes place at Joe's Pie Diner where Jenna spends most of her days waiting tables and talking with the eccentric personalities of Dawn (Jessie Shelton) and Becky (Maiesha McQueen). Before much of the story gets underway, there's already a sense of playfulness that comes with the setting. The customers are friendly, especially owner Joe (Larry Marshall) - who is always eager to have Jenna's new pies, and the idea of the simple life feels glamorized. Who would want more than to serve food at a friendly establishment where half of the orchestra plays onstage? It's a big reason why the conflict seems so tragic. Jenna's pregnancy isn't wanted. It was obtained in a drunken coup with her husband (Ryan G. Dunkin), who serves as the show's antagonist thanks to his narcissistic tendencies that gets him fired from his job just as the pregnancy begins to impact Jenna's day-to-day. Along with an affair with Dr. Pomatter (Steven Good), the story unwinds with plenty of character moments that alleviate the harsh subject with jokes about how awful husbands are, and how Dawn is a bit of a ditz.
The story is based on the 2007 film by Adrienne Shelly and mostly sticks to the script by adapting a lot of the most memorable lines. However, the show has been expanded upon by making the show more inclusive, meaning that the cast is a more diverse group of personalities clashing together in ways that better reflect small town America. There's also a lot more slapstick than in the film, especially in regards to Dawn's goofy boyfriend character Ogie (Jeremy Morse). Where he was more subtle in the film, he now becomes an audience favorite with an introductory scene that features a lot of slapstick, wonderful dancing, and a song with enough jokes to warrant buying the soundtrack ("Never Ever Getting Rid of Me"). The show is more of a celebration of the story, allowing every character to have at least one memorable song in between Jenna's bigger story. It may be a lot sillier than Shelly's film, but it's for the best as otherwise it would be less interesting as a stage production.
While the cast as a whole brings a great energy to the show, a lot of credit should be given to Dwyer. Throughout the show, she is required to shift between great comedic moments to passionate singing ("She Used to Be Mine") that will tear up the room. She is a performer with enough great timing to allow each joke to have just enough beats to work. Her struggles feel real to the audience because of how vulnerable and melancholic she feels even when projecting a sense of confidence. Jenna as a character is already in a tragic corner of having an unwanted pregnancy and an abusive husband, and Dwyer allows the character to escape into flights of fancy as extras dress her in a chef's apron and give her a bowl as the mantra "sugar, butter, flour" plays over her new recipe instructions. It's clear that cooking has always been an escape, and the show perfectly conveys the struggle, managing to turn the act of making a crust into something cathartic. Even the choice to expand on Jenna's back story improves the show's relationship to cooking, and makes her more dynamic as a result.
For someone not often associated with composing Broadway show tunes, Sara Bareillis' shift from pop is something that's a revelation. With her jaunty piano melodies, she manages to already create a unique style that's fresh and modern. The show doesn't have any dull moments, and the lyrical wit that she brings to the show allows these characters to feel more sincere and authentic, even when they're at their most dramatic. For a story that's at times rather straightforward, the appeal usually comes down to how well these performers can sing and thankfully everyone can deliver a line that at one point feels melodically stumbling into chaos and still maintain balance. For what the show lacks in grand musical dance numbers, the choreography to the various numbers are at times effective enough by using minimalism to convey sight gags, including one risque moment in the first act involving doctors and pies.
Waitress is a delightful show and one that uses every element to its full potential. While the film it's based on has a bit more of a melancholic tone, it manages to still come across in between bubbly songs that hide a mix of wit and despair. The cast's energy radiates through the theater and makes every moment a delight, mixing everything into its own metaphorical warm pie. It's a show that proves that while things may look unexceptional from the outside, cooking them together can lead to something new and exciting. That's very much the case for this show and something that helps it become one of the most fun shows of the past few years. If nothing else, it will give you something to cook when you get home, which is more than what some traditional Broadway shows could do.
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