Broadway’s ‘Waitress’ Announces Closing Date
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Broadway’s Waitress will close Jan. 5, 2020, the show’s producers announced today. The Sara Bareilles musical, directed by Diane Paulus, began previews at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre on March 25, 2016, opened on April 24, and will have played 33 previews and 1,544 regular performances by closing night.
The announcement was made by lead producers Barry and Fran Weissler.
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With a book by Jessie Nelson, music and lyrics by Bareilles and choreography by Lorin Latarro, Waitress was based on the 2007 film written and directed by Adrienne Shelly starring Keri Russell.
The musical adaptation premiered at Boston’s American Repertory Theatre in summer 2015 before moving to Broadway.
Broadway’s Waitress originally starred Jessie Mueller as Jenna, the pie-maker stuck in an abusive marriage. In its nearly four-year run, the production has featured cast members Adam Shapiro, Al Roker, Betsy Wolfe, Christopher Fitzgerald, Colleen Ballinger, Dakin Matthews, Drew Gehling, Eddie Jemison, Erich Bergen, Gavin Creel, Jason Mraz, Jenna Ushkowitz, Jeremy Jordan, Joey MacIntyre, John Cullum, June Squibb, Katharine McPhee, Katie Lowes, Keala Settle, Kimiko Glenn, Nicolette Robinson, Noah Galvin, Shoshana Bean, Todrick Hall, Will Swenson and eight five-year-old girls who played Lulu.
Sara Bareilles herself played the lead role at one point, making her Broadway stage debut.
Waitress recouped its $12 million investment less than 10 months into its Broadway run – it, and and Hamilton, are the only two new musicals from the 2015-2016 Broadway season still running that went into profit.
Waitress currently is playing in London’s West End at the Adelphi Theatre, on a North American tour, and is planning to open in Australia and Holland in 2020, and Japan in 2021. The show’s producers say they are also in talks with over 20 international markets about future productions.
Bareilles said, “The run of Waitress on Broadway has far surpassed my expectations and I am so very proud of what we were able to create here in New York City, but I am still so moved and delighted by the knowledge that our show will continue to have a big, beautiful life in other cities around the world, and on tour.”
Waitress is produced on Broadway by Barry and Fran Weissler and Norton and Elayne Herrick.
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