Posted: 8/20/15 at 7:26pm
I also agree. Jeanna or Keala or both should get a 2nd song over him.
Posted: 8/20/15 at 8:04pm
mailhandler777 said: "I also agree. Jeanna or Keala or both should get a 2nd song over him."
Right. I'd rather hear them. It will be interesting to see how the songs and storylines evolve before this heads to Broadway. I think Jenna's story is largely set, since it follows the movie quite closely. The struggle seems to be in the areas where they expanded supporting character stories. I'm happy they did so, but they are the parts that need the most work.
Posted: 8/20/15 at 8:14pm
I wonder if this will follow on If/Then's footsteps and not get great reviews but run for a year based on Sara Barellies name and Jessie Muellers name
Posted: 8/20/15 at 10:55pm
Has anyone seen any published reviews so far? I can't find any but what to see what the critics thought!
Posted: 8/20/15 at 10:58pm
Clyde15 said: "I wonder if this will follow on If/Then's footsteps and not get great reviews but run for a year based on Sara Barellies name and Jessie Muellers name"
I don't think those would buy you a year.
Posted: 8/20/15 at 11:05pm
Agreed, Idina Menzel of Wicked and Frozen fame and the creators of the Pulitzer-Prize winner Next to Normal are much bigger names to the public than Tony Award-Winner Jessie Mueller and Grammy-nominee Sara Bareilles, who most know only from "Love Song" and maybe from "Brave."
Updated On: 8/20/15 at 11:05 PM
Posted: 8/20/15 at 11:07pm
To the Broadway community, maybe, but id say Sara Bareilles is a widely recognized name. Not that she's IN the show, but she's a massive mainstream recording artist of the past few years or so.
Posted: 8/20/15 at 11:09pm
GreasedLightning said: "To the Broadway community, maybe, but id say Sara Bareilles is a widely recognized name. Not that she's IN the show, but she's a massive mainstream recording artist of the past few years or so. "
Somewhat like Sting, perhaps?
Posted: 8/20/15 at 11:11pm
I'm a gigantic Sara Bareilles fan (and legally purchased each of her albums which is saying something for my generation), I was thinking of the mainstream that wouldn't be too familiar with her work beyond the songs I mentioned. I hope the show is successful (and can't wait for the recording) but these early reports are worrying.
Posted: 8/20/15 at 11:14pm
Isn't that the point of the out of town tryout, though? To get the show up on its feet, see what's working, see what isn't, try to fix it, etc.?
Posted: 8/20/15 at 11:38pm
Variety is mixed:
http://variety.com/2015/legit/reviews/waitress-review-musical-art-1201573745/
WBUR is positive:
http://artery.wbur.org/2015/08/20/waitress-review
Boston Globe is mixed, loves Jessie:
Updated On: 8/20/15 at 11:38 PM
Posted: 8/21/15 at 12:06am
Apparently Nathan Fillion was there and enjoyed it...according to his Instagram, at least...
Posted: 8/21/15 at 12:13am
I'm such a big theatre fan, that I don't listen to anything BUT cast recordings. So, no, I have no idea who Sara Bareilles is. Ask me about broadway actors, and I'll tell you how many cast recordings they're in. Jukebox musicals and original musicals from mainstream (to an extent) artists introduce me to them. Happy to have another Jessie Muller cast recording soon... all I can tell from pictures is that the set is in the same level as Violet's... I can be wrong. I know I'm being picky but I wish new shows would have big sets like the old days. Now everything seems so basic and cheap.
Posted: 8/21/15 at 2:18pm
I think the Boston Globe, Variety and WBUR reviews are pretty much on target.
I did have a huge issue with Jenna's romance. I did not see the chemistry there, and thought it was "abrupt" as one of the reviews said. I just did not buy into that part of the story line at all.
To quote Variety,"Meanwhile, there’s little evidence for the good doctor being Jenna’s lost soulmate, despite his loving bedside manner, and the 11th-hour cameo of Dr. Pomatter’s wife is a questionable choice, at least as it’s presented now."
Posted: 8/21/15 at 2:33pm
I'm guess Dr. Pomatter was bored with his marriage. In one of his first scenes with Jenna after she asked how pregnant she was and that she had some time before she started showing his response was how beautiful a womans body was while pregnant( or something similar to that). Maybe it was the Peachykeen Tarts she gave him...haha.
Posted: 8/22/15 at 12:48pm
I just looked to see what tickets were left and it looks like the rest of the run is sold out.
Posted: 8/22/15 at 1:08pm
Just saw Waitress at the ART. I'd give it a 6 out of 10.
Mueller gives a lovely, heart-filled performance - though, as was the case with ONCE, you have a grounded central character surrounded by stock, musical theater caricatures, for the most part.
Falls into the trap of most contemporary book musicals of being song heavy and not deserving to sing in each place a song is inserted. This is always something worked out by writers from tryouts to opening night. Also, falls into the the trap of many screen to stage adaptations where it is hardly a theatrical re-conception of the material. It feels (though I've never seen the movie) like a fairly straightforward, uninspired adaptation. Someone who has seen both may be able to confirm or refute this statement.
Most of the score is forgettable - but Mueller is given a couple Bareilles power ballads to shine - though on her penultimate number where she falls in love with her baby and gains the courage to leave her husband needs a dramatic arc (no fault of Mueller, its just the way the song is written).
I'd definitely recommend it to Bostonians who have a chance to see this pre-Broadway tryout - not so much to those traveling to NYC to see only one or two shows when they are in town.
Posted: 8/22/15 at 1:22pm
I just looked to see what tickets were left and it looks like the rest of the run is sold out.
It's mostly sold out, though some performances are currently offering a ticket or two.
But for anyone who's disappointed and still wanted to go, keep going back to the site. Last year for FN, it was listed as sold out pretty early, but good seats would open up for many performances as that performance grew close. I don't know if those were seats they were saving "just in case" for famous people or what, but it did keep happening.
Updated On: 8/22/15 at 01:22 PM
Posted: 8/22/15 at 1:24pm
Why would you.make recommendations on something that has 6 months of work ahead of it?
I watched the film again last night, and was surprised how very closely the musical followed it....including many of the things we are faulting the book with including no reason for the attraction between the doc and Jenna, the stalker feel to the boyfriend, what's wrong with his marriage, the last minute inclusion OF the perky wife.
Posted: 8/22/15 at 8:53pm
I'm here with a friend now and we're both loving it. Jessie and cast are fantastic.
Posted: 8/23/15 at 11:01am
I always assumed that Jenna didn't continue her relationship with the Doc. because she doesn't want to mess with his sweet wife that has nothing wrong with her. I kind of feel like the doctor is kind of a jerk at the end because he cheated on his wife for absolutely no reason. I don't know how they present the ending in the show but the movie has a sort of feminist "I don't need no man" ending. She kind of realizes that the men in her life are kind of pigs but in different ways. One is completely abusive and the other is cheating on his sweet wife. She finds out that the only love she needs in her life is from her daughter.
Posted: 8/23/15 at 11:20am
I saw the show on Wednesday and I really enjoyed it. I am a huge Barellies fan and I loved the film. I thought there were a few issues that need to be worked on (sound being one of the biggest... I had a very hard time understanding some of the lyrics in a few songs... Especially the ensemble numbers) and I think a few of the characters could be fleshed out better, but never was I bored during the show. The songs fit into the story and I thought Barelles did a wonderful job and the score is most definitely peppered with her style. I have to ask, though - why are people seeing this when they "know it's mediocre" and "they're going to hate it," essentially going into it with a closed mind and not looking at it as a new work that, for all purposes, is still a work in progress that has months to work out the problems before it hits Broadway. At least the show is getting the benefit of an out-of-town tryout, which, these days, seems to not always be the norm.
Posted: 8/23/15 at 1:02pm
^That only helps if they make the necessary changes.
Posted: 8/23/15 at 1:26pm
I don't like this show. It devalues the importance of a father in a child's life.
She should have stayed with her husband.
Posted: 8/23/15 at 1:51pm
Great, another attention seeker to block.
