Review: WAITRESS THE MUSICAL at ZACH Theatre

WAITRESS was originally a small indie film with a big heart. Written and directed by Adrienne Shelly, the 2007 movie told the story of Jenna, a Southern diner waitress with a knack for pie-making and a longing for a better life. The film quietly built a loyal following, beloved for its quirky charm, honest emotion, and bittersweet tone.

Fast forward to 2015, and WAITRESS reemerged in a new form, this time with music. The musical adaptation, featuring a soulful pop-infused score by singer-songwriter Sara Bareilles (in her Broadway debut, no less), premiered at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, Massachusetts, before making its way to Broadway in 2016. There’s catchy tunes and an entertaining plot, but the coolest part? The show earned multiple Tony nominations, inspired tours across the U.S. and internationally, and even brought Bareilles herself to the stage in the title role. It's a show that continues to resonate, and it’s now in an extended run at the ZACH through July 27th.

WAITRESS concerns Jenna, a talented pie baker trapped in an abusive marriage and an unwanted pregnancy, who dreams of a better life. With the support of her quirky coworkers and a secret affair with her doctor, she rediscovers her strength and ultimately chooses independence, motherhood, and self-love over escape through romance. Top it off as the first Broadway musical in history to have an all-female creative team at the helm, and you’ve got a blue ribbon winner.

It pleases me to no end that ZACH has followed suit with the creative team engaged in their production! This extends greatly to the rest of the Production Team.  Scenic designer Robin Vest, has impressively turned the Topfer stage into a diner in the round, complete with seats for folks onstage, and a pie section if you’d like a slice. Marie Yokoyama deserves praise for the gorgeous lighting that creates depth in a show that doesn’t get too deep about abuse. And, if not just for the usual details involving intimacy onstage, I salute Andrea Grapko who may have worked alongside director and choreographer Cassie Abate for one particularly amusing pie eating scene… .

The interconnected company of ZACH’s WAITRESS features Leslie McDonel as an ingenuous Jenna, Nyla Watson as a bold, wise crack Becky, and Catherine Roddey as the compulsive and innocent Dawn. They form the powerhouse trio of waitresses at the heart of the story. Gabriel Bernal plays a nervous Dr. Pomatter, Jenna’s charming but complicated love interest, while Leland Burnett takes on the role of the abuser Earl, her controlling husband. Charlie Turner brings hilarious flair to Ogie. Curt Denham is the big hearted and curmudgeonly Joe while Roderick Sanford embodies a big grumpy Cal, the diner’s cook. Asia-Lige Arnold appears as Norma/Francine, and Kelly Whitlow, Brian Sanchez, and Jacob Canderozzi serve as swings in this production. It’s a cast that is quite solid, as one might expect from a ZACH production, and you’ll be hard pressed to choose a favorite in this charming show. Everyone gets a moment, or two, or three, all the while making up the company that revolves around Jenna in both actual and emotional ways. I’ll warn you though, Aliyah Thigpen as LuLu will steal your heart in a matter of nanoseconds. STOP THE CUTE! Relentlessly adorable.

Leslie McDonel’s portrayal of Jenna brings a grounded, emotionally honest center to a show that sometimes skirts the edge of caricature, especially when dealing with weighty themes like domestic abuse. While the humor occasionally veers into the over-the-top, there's a good deal of compassion and encouragement written into the characters, and this cast delivers it with sincerity. Still, the show’s tone can feel cognitively dissonant. The script sidesteps the long-term impact of abuse, glosses over questions of consent, and frames Jenna’s ethically murky affair with her doctor in a way that’s more charming than critical.

Yet in her director’s note, Cassie Abate anchors the production in a deeper truth, quoting No Visible Bruises: What We Don’t Know About Domestic Violence Can Kill Us by Rachel Louise Snyder: “Looking to the future rather than just surviving the present was a whole different way of moving through the world.” This is Jenna’s journey. She clings to the hope of a different future to make sense of her present. It’s a move not just of survival, but of vision. Through enduring friendships and the quiet act of dreaming beyond her circumstances, Jenna becomes a symbol of resilient possibility. In a world where many cannot yet claim their future, WAITRESS offers a vision of what healing and hope might look like.

Waitress
Written by Jesse Nelson
Music and Lyrics by Sara Bareilles
Directed and Choreographed by Cassie Abate
Music Direction by Aimee Radics

The Topfer Theatre
Zach Theatre

Wednesdays-Sundays,
June 11 - July 27, 2025
Kleberg Stage, Zach Theatre
South Lamar Blvd at Riverside Drive
Austin, TX, 78704

Run Time: 2 hours and 35 minutes including one 20-minute intermission

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