Book: Jessie Nelson
Music and lyrics: Sara Bareilles
Director: Diane Paulus
Take Carrie Hope Fletcher leading a stellar cast and mix it with a Sara Bareilles’ musical and you will have the most perfect recipe for a night out to remember.
Waitress, as a musical, has been around now since 2015, but it still has all the magic and charm it had back when Jessie Mueller originated the principal role more than a decade ago.
It follows Jenna (Hope Fletcher), a waitress in a diner, as she navigates an unwanted pregnancy with the help of her two best friends Becky (Sandra Marvin) and Dawn (Evelyn Hoskins) – dreaming up lots of pie recipes along the way. You may think that a musical about a diner would be pure cheese on toast, but while this show has plenty of fun and a pie dish full of humour, it also covers some difficult themes including domestic abuse, death and early motherhood. It has you laughing, it has you crying – and absolutely everything in between.
Jenna is a demanding role, one that barely leaves the stage and Fletcher does it with ease. It’s a part she’s wanted for a very long time and, as a mother in her real life, now is definitely the right time for her to take on the role, which is also being played on this tour by the wonderful Lucie Jones. You can see how she brings her own maternal instincts to the stage, making Jenna believable and authentic – and her rendition of the most well known song She Used To Be Mine really does raise the roof. Her chemistry with Dr Pomatter (Dan Partridge) is also fabulous and the pair definitely shine in their more comedic moments together.
Perhaps one of the best things about this production is the friendship narrative, the trio – all with their own secrets and dreams – sticking together through thick and through thin. Hoskins makes a wonderfully ditsy and dynamic Dawn and Marvin is just as watchable as Becky (although with those vocals she definitely deserves a better solo number). And it’s not just the girl friendship – it’s Jenna’s developing relationship with the owner of the diner Old Joe (played by veteran comedian of Family Fortunes’ fame Les Dennis) that is also beautiful to watch.
In her songwriting Bareilles is a wonderful storyteller and her work with this musical is no different, especially when combined with a stunning book by Jessie Nelson. The way various plot lines intertwine at once and the way so many emotions are covered in just a few hours is truly captivating. The duo have well and truly created an escapism pie and hopefully can create many more for audiences to devour in the future. Bareilles’ music is just beautiful, each bringing a different dynamic – with highlights including The Negative, Bad Idea and Everything Changes.
A special mention must also go to the scene changes, some of the slickest out there – transitioning from diner, to doctors’ surgery, to Jenna and Earl’s home and cleverly incorporating the musicians into the fictional world, who play live on the stage.
A perfect mixture of funny, dark and uplifting – it’s a musical that’s not linear, its not completely predictable and it’s one of the best on the touring theatre menu right now.
Runs until 18 July 2026.
