For those in the mood for a fresh slice of top-rated musical pie, I’d highly recommend Waitress the musical at Liverpool Empire - with cherries on top.
The all American cheesy musical based on the book by Jessie Nelson had its opening night last night and the show was just as addictive as dessert. With music and lyrics carefully crafted by Sara Bareilles, the stage production is based on the film adaptation written by Adrienne Shelly.
It follows Jenna (Emmerdale’s Chelsea Halfpenny), a waitress and pro pie-maker who dreams of happiness in her life. With the emotional support of her work friends at ‘Joe’s Pie Diner’ Becky (Wendy Mae Brown) and Dawn (Evelyn Hoskins), Jenna overcomes challenges with laughter, love, friendship, and a whole lot of singing.
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Waitress is more than just a romance story about boy meets girl. As well as the intense chemistry between love interest Dr. Pomatter (Busted’s Matt Jay-Willis) and Jenna, the play also focuses on some hard-hitting issues regarding relationships and money struggles.
The roller coaster plot mixed together with some amazing music and simple yet captivating choreography by Lorin Latarro creates a recipe for success. Along the way there are plenty of laughs courtesy of waitress Dawn and her nerdy yet sweet persona, as well as her wacky, charismatic love interest Ogie (George Crawford) who acts like he’s fresh out of The Book of Mormon.
At first, I was a little confused by Matt Willis’s portrayal of Dr. Pomatter - he was quiet, anxious and fidgety. It didn’t take me long to realise that this was just the Dr’s character, and Willis was portraying it perfectly to the point where he made me cringe in my seat.
The chemistry between the pair was undeniable, making each duet powerful, emotional and damn right believable. With some songs taking a steamy twist, the two managed to hit the nail on the head and create the perfect combination of funny and sexy.
With a mixture of catchy monologues through song and a motif of baking throughout, Waitress the musical managed to make me laugh, cry and sing all in one sitting. The choreography was light, fluffy and flawless and each song had me mesmerised with every note hit perfectly.
The classic American backdrop of neon ‘Joe’s Pie Diner’ lights combined with slick set changes are a delight aesthetically. Halfpenny’s soft and sweet vocals are easily switched to a booming powerful voice with minimal effort and Willis captures the American sweetheart vocals perfectly.
If you want to go and see a musical that will encapsulate you from start to finish, and make you feel a range of emotions, Waitress offers a slice of perfection. The production is at Liverpool Empire until Saturday May 14, you can get tickets here.
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