After a last minute change of plans I found myself
sauntering into the Alhambra on a miserable Tuesday evening to see a show I
knew very little about and had almost no expectations of. I'd heard good
things, but as this wasn't particularly a must-see show for me, I decided to
keep myself in the dark and throw myself into it with an open mind.
And boy, oh boy was I surprised.
'Waitress' follows young pie-making extraordinaire Jenna as
she navigates a particularly difficult period in her life – becoming a mother
in the midst of an abusive marriage, falling in love with an unavailable man
and trying to build herself a life where she can be happy…not just 'happy
enough'.
Despite having no prior knowledge of the show – the
background, the story and the songs were all completely new to me – everything I
had heard had been nothing but positive, so I expected it to be good,
but this was nothing short of extraordinary. I’ve been an avid theatre fan for
the best part of 15 years and never before have I heard a cast this strong, and
who fit together just perfectly.
Chelsea Halfpenny is an absolute powerhouse as Jenna –
right from the very first note, I couldn’t wait to hear more from her. It’s not
often you come across a voice so strong and powerful and yet so beautifully
soft in a way that conveys every emotion just so. Her rendition of 'She Used To
Be Mine' was a complete tearjerker, filled with raw emotion and passion that
it's so rare to find. She played the part beautifully and had incredible
chemistry with the entire cast – particularly with David Hunter as Dr Pomatter.
He was an absolute tour-de-force; charming, clumsy and awkwardly funny in a way
that made you feel like you could almost forgive him the whole cheating-on-his-lovely-wife
thing.
The characters, and the talented bunch playing them, was
really what made this show for me – it's a believable true-to-life story about
real people making real mistakes, and the flaws are what makes the characters
so much easier to relate to. It's also a great jumping off point for the show's
incredible humour; for a production with some darker and slightly more taboo
elements (domestic abuse and adultery are key themes for the leading lady) it
really knows how to keep things light. It broaches these complex, difficult
situations in such a gentle manner that the juxtaposition between these tense
moments and the bright, colourful hustle and bustle of the rest of the show
makes the moments that hit hard, hit even harder. Tamlyn Henderson played
Jenna's husband, Earl, absolutely remarkably and he really made you hate the
guy – although we didn't see too much of him, he definitely made an impact.
Playing the self-centred and emotionally desperate abusive husband can't be an
easy job, but his emotional portrayal was right on the mark. Although we never
see Earl hit Jenna, the moments of intense anger, the emotional outbursts and
the tense, long moments where you're never quite sure just how far he's going
to take it were handled beautifully.
Evelyn Hoskins as
the lovably eccentric Dawn and George Crawford as her adoring Ogie were a
laugh riot and had me crying with laughter on more than one occasion, as did
the sassy back-and-forth between Becky (Wendy Me Brown) and restaurant manager
Cal (Christopher D. Hunt)
'Waitress' really was a complete underdog for me, but it's
skyrocketed right to the top of my list of all-time favourites. The songs are
absolute earworms I just can't get enough of, I've recommended it to anyone who
will listen (and even some who won't) and I'm already planning to see it again.
I've got nothing but praise for this incredibly talented cast, and if you see
anything at all in the theatre this year, make it a big juicy slice of
'Waitress'!
Reviewer - Hazel Kaye
on - 26.7.22
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