Review: Aurora Theatre serves a slice of humor and heart with ‘Waitress The Musical’ 

Restaurants have secrets. Small towns have secrets. Add sugar, butter and flour and you end up with Waitress The Musical, a Tony-nominated production written by Jesse Nelson, with music and lyrics by Sara Bareilles and based on the 2007 independent film written and directed by Adrienne Shelly. On stage at Aurora Theatre through June 15 with an enthusiastic cast, entertaining score and uplifting plot, the production is not a full meal but certainly a treat. 

Set in an unnamed Southern town, Waitress follows recipe developer and server Jenna Hunterson (Chloe Cordle) as she is faced with a pie fork in the road and the challenge to make the right decisions. As the curtain rises, Jenna’s life consists of creating both sweet and savory pies for a modest restaurant called Joe’s Diner, bantering with fellow waitresses Becky (Daja M. Rice) and Dawn (Kari Twyman) and going home to an abusive, drunken husband named Earl (John Bobek). 

Be warned, feminism plays the long game here as we are set up with a gender normative plot right down to the presence of the term “waitress.” Jenna is much more to Joe’s Diner than someone who serves food; she creates the very pies that sustain the business, giving them memorable names like “Mermaid Marshmallow Pie.” Yet, she takes daily flak from the men around her — not only her husband but her supervisor, Cal (Greg Hunter) and occasionally Joe himself (Stephan Jones), the owner of the eatery who sits in Jenna’s section, nitpicks his meals and reads their shared Aquarius horoscope. 

When an unexpected life change forces Jenna to take a look around at reality, necessity becomes the mother of her invented plan: Could she enter the pie contest coming to town, win the prize money and start a brand-new life away from Earl? 

The cast of Waitress is overall solid, and the stand-out characters include Rice’s irresistibly sassy Becky; Hunter’s eye-roll-worthy Cal, Twyman’s dorky and lovable Dawn, and the bumbling but seductive Dr. Pomatter (Michael Stiggers).

Though parts of the score fall flat — “The Negative,” for example, makes comedic light of an unfunny situation — a number of songs are fun and lighthearted, particularly those sung by scene-stealers Dawn and her suitor Ogie (Frankie Marasa 5th): “When He Sees Me,” “Never Getting Rid of Me” and “I Love You Like a Table.” 

Chemistry crackles whenever the characters get together: Cal and the three waitresses; the waitresses themselves; Jenna and Dr. Pomatter; Dawn and Ogie. Chemistry is less palpable when Cordle’s Jenna is left to herself; the emotional expression feels a bit flat. This musical’s strength is in numbers — the most high-energy, humorous and heartfelt moments are shared. 

Designed by Shannon Robert and Brandon Roak with prop designs by Kristin Talley, the set of Waitress is immersive and realistic, right down to billboards about school and the lottery overlooking Joe’s Diner, plus numerous pies. Lighting design by Rachael Blackwell addresses the correct moments with washes of color. Dialogue and sound are mostly crisp, aside from a time or two the orchestra swelled over the singing during the performance attended for review. 

Because it’s a romantic comedy, the plot of Waitress The Musical ties up neatly with a bow at the end, dissolving any short-lived complexity. But there is relief and satisfaction in its endgame — in Jenna’s realizations, the redemption of certain characters and, most importantly, the idea of women’s freedom. Writer Adrienne Shelly was tragically murdered in 2006 by a construction worker before the film was released and a long time before the first staging of the musical in 2015. It’s hard to deny the poetic justice in the conclusion of Shelly’s final creative work — and in Aurora Theatre’s delightful rendition of the story. 

Where & When

Waitress The Musical is at Aurora Theatre through June 15. Tickets start at $40 and depend on seating.
128 E. Pike St., Lawrenceville

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Denise K. James is an ArtsATL senior editor.