Book by Jessie Nelson
Music & Lyrics by Sara Bareilles
Review by Laurie Kemmett
Sugar. Butter. Flour. All these ingredients are crucial when crafting the perfect pie, as our protagonist, Jenna, knows all too well. Celebrating its ten year anniversary, Sara Bareilles and Jessie Nelson’s Waitress spins into Glasgow like a whirlwind, bringing stunning vocals, rip-roaring laughter and many tearjerkers.
Waitress follows Jenna, who works in Joe’s Diner also with her two friends Becky (Bernadette Bangura) and Dawn (Evelyn Hoskins). When she discovers her pregnancy, she must contend with money troubles, her abusive husband, and a blossoming romance with her OB/GYN (Dan Partridge). Dawn and Becky have their own troubles as well – Becky is her husband’s primary caregiver, while Dawn is a recluse who spends all her time watching the History Channel. Day in, day out, they bake, serve, and gossip along with gruff manager with a heart of gold, Cal (Dan O’Brien), and the diner’s cantankerous owner, Joe – played charmingly by Les Dennis, who makes up for his slightly weaker vocals with a crowd-pleasing performance.
Lucie Jones plays the heart of the story, Jenna, reprising the role after her West End stint. There’s no denying that she’s a phenomenal performer, bringing heart and emotion to the role and delivering vocal acrobatics that are somehow controlled as well. She’s supported by some incredible cast members – most notably Mark Anderson as Ogie, Dawn’s passionate and odd love interest who brought energy by the bucketload, and Bernadette Bangura as Becky. Bangura gives an arresting, beautiful performance with quiet pain under her light hearted moments. It makes you wish she wasn’t constantly reduced to a well-timed punchline so that you can enjoy her performance all the more. It also feels as though some of the stakes aren’t as high as they could have been. Earl, Jenna’s abusive husband played by Mark Willshire, feels more like a pathetic nuisance than a very real threat to Jenna’s life, and moments of strife lack tension.
Some elements of the show haven’t aged well. Stereotypes of the sassy Black friend, the loud and nosy Latina nurse, and the girl who just needs to take her glasses off to become beautiful are all present in this show. There’s an attempt at amends though, as a Betsy Ross flag is whipped around to reveal the LGBTQ+ Pride flag on the back.
But by far, the most egregious sin in this show is the spotlight following our main characters. Shaky, wandering, and always a bit too slow, it was a constant distraction from what was actually happening. At one point it drifted so that instead of seeing Jenna’s face while she sang, the audience were treated to her bare feet glowing. Crucial moments were missed as the spotlight struggled to keep up with the blocking. The lighting team of Waitress needs to learn to trust their audience to know who to be looking at.
Overall, this show is a great demonstration of beautiful vocal abilities and a heartwarming story. It’s just missing one or two key ingredients.
A Heartwarming Whirlwind
Waitress runs at The King’s Theatre, Glasgow, until 10th October
Running time – Two hours and thirty-five minutes with one interval
Review by Laurie (contact@corrblimey.uk)
