Interview: K.J. Hippensteel And Brooke Jacob of WAITRESS at Short North Stage

Brooke Jacob is the first to admit her storyline is a bit unusual in the Short North Stage’s production of WAITRESS, which runs July 10-Aug. 10 at the Garden Theatre (1187 N. High Street in downtown Columbus).

Jacob plays a character that is unfaithful to her stage spouse by having an affair with her actual husband. The actress plays Jenna Hunterson, who escapes her abusive husband Earl (Cedric Gegel) by having an affair with her OBGYN, Dr. James Pomatter, (K.J. Hippensteel, who, in real life, has been married to Jacob for 13 years).

“It’s so weird,” Jacob said with a laugh. “It’s kind of funny we don’t play a married couple in the show, but we have a really sweet relationship in WAITRESS. I can’t believe we get to do this together.”

“I’m excited to see Brooke shine,” Hippensteel added. “I’ve wanted to do the show since I saw it on Broadway, especially playing (Pomatter). He’s just a super quirky and fun character. The comedy he brings to the stage opens up the show for people.”

WAITRESS, which is based on the 2007 film by the late Adrienne Shelly, features a unconventional script by Jessie Nelson and a moving score by Sara Bareilles. The show had the misfortune of debuting on Broadway in 2016 when the theatre scene was caught up in HAMILTON mania. The Lin-Manuel Miranda musical snatched up 11 Tony Awards; WAITRESS was nominated for four Tonys and six Drama Desk Awards but only took home one (Christopher Fitzgerald capturing the Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical from the Drama Desk).

Ironically, the SNS production of WAITRESS coincides with HAMILTON’s run at the Ohio Theatre (July 8-20).

‘THE PERFECT MUSICAL’

Jacob and Hippensteel join a solid cast for this show. In addition to Jacob, Hippensteel, and Gegel, director Dionysia Williams Velazco’s cast features Sarah Chellis (Dawn), Dru Loman (Ogie), Bessie Smith (Becky), Tom Hellems (Joe), and Christian Cooper (Cal).

WAITRESS traces the story of Jenna, a waitress at a local diner who bakes pies to escape (both mentally and physically) her toxic home life. Yet as stark and dark as that sounds, the show careens between comedy and drama.

“Everybody wants to do this show,” Jacob said. “It’s just an amazing story. It's one of those shows that makes you laugh so hard in one moment and then you're crying in the next. You're like, ‘what am I supposed to be doing here, laughing or crying?’

“This is one of these perfect musicals that’s going to surprise audiences. It has gorgeous music and storytelling. It’s one of those shows where you leave feeling a lot of emotions. Hopefully, audiences will laugh a little and have a good cathartic cry by the end of it.”

When it debuted, the Clinton Foundation honored WAITRESS for becoming the first Broadway show to have an entirely female Production Team: Bareilles (composer and lyricist), Nelson (book adaptor), Diane Paulus (director), and Lorin Latarro (choreographer). The foundation initiated the #CeilingBreaker campaign and distributed free tickets for some performances.

“One of the things I like about this show is that it’s female driven,” said Hippensteel, who has played Elder Price in THE BOOK OF MORMON on Broadway and London’s West End as well as being Fiyero in a national tour of WICKED. “That’s very rare in our business.”

It is also very rare that Jacob and Hippensteel get to be on the same stage at the same time. This is the first time the two have performed together since they were married. The two sent in their videos together but auditioned separately for the show.

 According to Jacob, performing in the same show as her husband comes with its own set of advantages.

“It's always weird to do intimate scenes with someone you don't really know,” said Jacob, who earned rave reviews for her performance as the neurotic Sandy Lester in TOOTSIE at the Theatre By The Sea (South Kingstown, R.I.) and the North Shore Theatre (Beverly, Mass.). “To do those type of scenes with someone you’re comfortable with is obviously nice. You don’t have to think about it or ask, ‘Are you OK with this?’

“This show’s been fun because our boys (Huck and Shep) have been hearing us practice our lines around the house. They'll ask us, ‘What are you saying here? What's happening in that scene?’”

THE LOVE BOAT

To find a time when Hippensteel and Jacob shared a stage, you must go back to their courtship. Jacob was booked to be a performer on Azamara Journey, a small cruise ship that traveled all over South America.

Two weeks into rehearsals, it became apparent one of the cast members wasn’t working out. The ship’s entertainment director called Hippensteel to see if he was interested in joining the troupe. After Hippensteel said yes, the director told the NYC-based actor, “Good. We’ll see you in Los Angeles … tomorrow.”

“That was truly The Love Boat,” Hippensteel said. “There were five cast members and four of us got married to somebody else on the ship.”

“It was an easy place to fall in love,” Jacob added.                                                                         

SORT OF A HOMECOMING

The month long stay in Columbus will be a return to the Buckeye State for Hippensteel and Jacob. The last time the two spent a substantial chunk of time in Ohio was during the Pandemic.

Jacob grew up in Shaker Heights and attended Hathaway Brown School. Huck and Shep will be spending a lot of time with Jacob’s father, who still lives in the Cleveland area.

Hippensteel grew up in Atlanta but attended Wright State University in Dayton. The actor will be reunited with former classmate Velazco as well as one of his professors, Hellems.

“Dionysia’s such a fun person to work with,” said Hippensteel, who was in RAGTIME with Velasco at Wright State. “We graduated the same year and we had classes together all the time. We even did the tap dancing routine from SINGING IN THE RAIN for the school’s gala.
“I’m also incredibly excited my old professor is going to be in the show. I haven’t worked with him since college. Sometimes life brings you full circle. This just feels like it was meant to be.”