I love to watch theater plays and musicals. The feeling is different when watching it live. It's more than 4D or 5D for me. It was great that there's another great musical production, the Waitress, will be playing in one of the theaters in Manila and much greater that its international premiere is in Manila, which will be at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza, Makati City this coming November 9, 2018. The show, which continues to perform for sold-out audiences on Broadway and across the USA, is also set to debut at London's West End in 2019 and in Australia in 2020.
This musical production is based on the beloved film by Adrienne Shelly and it features music and lyrics from 6-time Grammy nominee Sara Bareilles ("Love Song," "Brave"); and a book by Jessie Nelson. The show made history by having Broadway's first all-female creative team.
Waitress tells the story of a pie maker named Jenna who, despite the mundanity of her life, finds comfort and reckoning in the simple magic of baking. With the help of her two friends Dawn and Becky, she dreams of a way out of her loveless marriage and musters the courage to change her life for the better.
One of the award winning international musical theatre star Joanna Ampil leads the show as Jenna. Some of her West End musical performances are Miss Saigon, Les Miserables, Avenue Q and Jesus Christ Superstar. She also played as Candida in the recent film Ang Larawan has won her numerous Best Actress Awards locally. Jenna will be her first role back in the local theatre scene after her stint as Grizabella in the international tour of Cats.
Another character in the musical is Becky, the sassy waitress and lovable friend of Jenna, which will be played by Bituin Escalante. One of the influential figure in OPM, Bituin has also made rounds in the theatre scene since 1999 and she said during our interview with her that before singing it was theater. She has starred in numerous Tony-winning shows in roles such as Joanne in Rent, Effie White in Dreamgirls, and Asaka in Once on this Island. Her recent performance as Aling Saling in Himala: The Musical has earned her critical acclaimed.
Maronne Cruz completes the trio characters in Waitress as plays the role of the neurotic and eccentric character of Dawn. Maronne is no stranger to musical theatre. She has appeared in numerous productions including Jeannie in Hair, Gabbi in Sa Wakas, Josephine in Ako Si Josephine, and Stepsister Joy in Cinderella. She has also appeared in the indie film Mariquina as Monet and, most recently, performed in the hit musical Ang Huling El Bimbo.
Waitress also features Luigi Quesada, Gerhard Krysstopher, Luis Marcelo, Emeline Celis Guinid, Teetin Villanueva, Sarah Facuri, and Jillian Ita-as.
It is under the direction of Bobby Garcia, Choreographed by Cecile Martinez, Set Design by Tony Award winner David Gallo, Lighting Design by Aaron Porter, Musical Direction by Farley Ascuncion, Costume Design by Raven Ong, Sound Design by Josh Millican, Hair and Make-up Design by Johann dela Fuente and Vocal Coaching by Manman Angsico.
