Prior to taking center stage in Waitress, the musical’s Tony- and Grammy-nominated composer Sara Bareilles met the press to discuss making her Broadway acting debut and the “nerve-racking and completely exhilarating” rehearsal process.
Also on hand were Bareilles’ two leading men, who also begin performances on March 31. Tony nominee Will Swenson will play Jenna’s abusive husband Earl, and TV favorite Chris Diamantopoulos returns to Broadway to play the doctor who offers her an escape from her harsh realities.“As a songwriter and an artist, I’m performing these songs a little bit from the perspective of ‘let me share with you what I’ve already figured out,’” Bareilles says as she describes her shift from penning the score to singing it as the show’s heroine. “This is just a slightly different perspective where you’re alongside your audience, and you can’t get ahead of the thought. That’s been a shift for me—and actually, a really welcomed one.”
The three will join a cast at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre that also includes Tony nominee Christopher Fitzgerald, Charity Angel Dawson, Caitlin Houlahan, Eric Anderson, and Dakin Matthews.
