In 2007, a little comedy-romance film ‘Waitress’ was making waves, written and directed by the late Adrienne Shelly, who was tragically murdered just months before the film was released. She starred in the feature film as the character Dawn, opposite Keri Russell and Nathan Fillion, playing the leads of Jenna and Dr. Pomatter respectively.
In 2016, the musical adaptation debuted on Broadway and by 2020, it was announced that Waitress The Musical would be coming to Australia. Then the world changed. We found ourselves locked down in our homes, shows ceased to play in theatres, and society seemed to collectively hold its breath.
When everything opened up again, I had wondered, “When is Waitress coming to Australia now?” It had been years. I even found myself asking a producer at a show once, who then preceded to lightly chuckle and admit that they didn’t have the rights. Naturally sure, wrong producer, but my question remained unanswered.
And then my answer came, in the form of an announcement last year that Waitress would finally be coming to Australia. Months later, there was a shift in Australian theatres and an opportunity arose; Waitress would be making its Australian debut right here in Melbourne.
With music and lyrics by pop singer-songwriter Sara Barielles, book by Jessie Nelson, directed by Diane Paulus, choreography by Lorin Latarro, and locally produced by John Frost for Crossroads Live, Waitress The Musical had been the first and only time a fully female creative team had put together a professional Broadway musical. The Australian production of Waitress too, has all right ingredients and the perfect recipe to bake a brilliant show daily, led by the incomparable Natalie Bassingthwaighte.
The show is pie-themed as soon as you walk in, with rotating pie stations on either side of the stage. The set design is also a diner most of the time, and honestly, this is not a show you will want to see on an empty stomach.
For the uninitiated, Waitress follows Jenna Hunterson (Natalie Bassingthwaighte), a prodigy pie-maker and waitress stuck in an abusive marriage with her long-time love through childhood, her husband Earl (Keanu Gonzalez). Jenna finds herself relying on her chosen family and the new connections that she’s made, to help her navigate through an unexpected pregnancy she never asked for.
Waitress is less about romance and more about the rediscovery of one’s power. Jenna admittedly is a flawed protagonist who ends up having an affair with her doctor, Dr. Pomatter (Rob Mills). We find that her friends too, Becky (Gabriyel Thomas), Dawn (Mackenzie Dunn), and Cal (John Xintavelonis) all have their own indiscretion that they’re not ashamed of. In fact, they own them and stand by their decisions. What Waitress focuses on is the story of a struggling woman finding herself again, being human, making mistakes, and reclaiming her narrative.
The first act feels a little slow, setting up the story and its characters. It didn’t help that during opening night, the audio mixing wasn’t great, and I couldn’t clearly hear nor understand what the cast were singing during the first couple of numbers. This was quickly fixed and by the end of the first act, you could feel that the story was just getting to the good parts. In comparison, the second act is jam-packed filled with anxiety, fear, domestic violence, heartache, change, acceptance and love. I confess, my initial hesitance had been transformed into physical tears.
I have seen Sara Barielles live before, and seeing her songwriting in a musical brings a whole new perspective to her work. Some of the songs were obviously hers with the signature gorgeous high notes, soft and wispy during ‘What’s Inside’. Other times, the songs were upbeat and fun like ‘Opening Up’, and I found myself surprised with tunes such as ‘The Negative’ that didn’t really sound like Barielles at all.
Cast wise, John Waters is so sweet as diner regular Joe. Not just when he sings ‘Take It From An Old Man’ but even when he’s performing his line. It is both captivating and endearing whenever Waters gets the moment to shine. John Xintavelonis’ Cal doesn’t have a solo song, but when he bonds with Gabriyel Thomas’ Becky, it’s always so fun trying to see what the pair are doing together, in the kitchen, in the diner, and you can’t help but snicker or sigh in awe. Thomas’ is also vocally astounding during her catchy solo, ‘I Didn’t Plan It’.
It’s not easy playing the ‘villain’ but Keanu Gonzalez seems to thrive on playing the bad boy, and he does it again as Earl. He has such a lovely voice when he sings ‘You Will Still Be Mine’, you almost forget he’s supposed to be the bad guy in Jenna’s journey. On the flip side, Gareth Isaac is a complete scene stealer as Ogie. It helps that he seems to get the best songs with ‘Never Ever Getting Rid of Me’ and ‘I Love You Like a Table’. Isaac’s on-stage chemistry with MacKenzie Dunn’s Dawn is also delightful. Dunn is perfect as Dawn, being the quirky, dorky and innocent friend of Jenna’s. Her solo, ‘When He Sees Me’ is also divine.
Rob Mills is perfectly cast as the awkward and tender Dr. Pomatter, his voice never fails and together with Natalie Bassingthwaighte’s Jenna Hunterson, the pair have believable chemistry and shine especially when they sing the beautiful ballad, ‘You Matter to Me’.
Last but not least, Natalie Bassingthwaighte is phenomenal as Jenna. Perhaps it’s due to her life experience, having to fight for herself, or even just struggling being a confident, strong and successful woman, but Bassingthwaighte carries this over so well into shaping the emotional depth needed to play Jenna. Jenna’s determination and resilience as she powers through her predicaments is relatable under Bassingthwaighte’s touch. Every moment that she graces the stage as well is a both a gift and a masterclass.
However, when she belts out and serenades the Melbourne audience with the bitter-sweet Sara Barielles exquisitely-penned self-love love song ‘She Used To Be Mine’, you could practically hear a pin drop in Her Majesty’s Theatre in between the lyrics. That moment changed everything. I was crying, completely unprepared without tissues and that pinnacle moment won me over.
We need more stories lead by female voices. Waitress The Musical is a tale of love. Not romantically. Although, yeah, Dr. Pomatter is kind of cute. But what Waitress really is about is learning to love yourself again and finding your own power. It may not be the feel-good musical that many expect, but it is a story that needs to be told and heard by everyone.
Waitress The Musical is currently playing in Melbourne at Her Majesty’s Theatre until July 9th. The show then heads to Sydney’s Sydney Lyric from August 1st until October 4th.
For more information and ticketing, visit:
https://waitressthemusical.com.au
https://www.instagram.com/waitressau
Photography by Grant Alexander.
