Hannah-Kathryn Wall, Samantha Lane Scruggs, and Becky Alex in the Waitress 10th anniversary tour. Photo by Jeremy Daniel

The Ten-Year Anniversary of Waitress

A diner may seem ordinary, but step inside the doors of the right one and you may find yourself changing your life. That’s the simple beauty of Waitress, now on tour to celebrate its ten-year anniversary of gracing Broadway with its intimate story of friendship, work, and the desire for a brighter future.

Samantha Lane Scruggs and the Waitress 10th anniversary tour company. Photo by Jeremy Daniel

Amid the bustle of Joe’s Pie Diner in a small, unnamed American town, Jenna Hunterson (played by Samantha Lane Scruggs), dreams and works. She bakes delectable pies for hungry customers — and not just your average apple or berry pie, but tantalizing works of art such as a Key (Lime) to Happiness Pie or a sinfully seductive Mermaid Marshmallow pie. But behind the sugar and butter, the pie-baking offers a relief from the pain of home life with her abusive husband.

Thankfully, Jenna is buoyed by her fellow waitresses and close friends, the irreverently funny Becky (portrayed by Hannah-Kathryn Wall) and the sweetly quirky Dawn (performed by Becky Alex). When an unwanted pregnancy spills into their world, each woman realizes their needs for love and independence are not only urgent, but worthy of acting upon.

“Waitress tells a universal, relatable story about finding the courage to change the trajectory of your life for the better,” says Wall. “I think a lot of people can relate to wanting to better themselves, and maybe not knowing how, but relying on friendships to help.”

Their friendship isn’t merely banter and comedy. Dawn and Becky offer Jenna support through her unraveling domestic world. And each woman has her own unique journey with romance and intimacy: Dawn decides how to open up to a new suitor, and Becky considers how to pursue happiness in her older years. Jenna offers up encouragement, not only through her words, but through her baking prowess (only a true friend makes a “Meet Your Dream Chocolate Cream Pie” for an upcoming date!). Through the ups and downs, they continue to care for each other and themselves, cooking up their own personal recipes for their own lives.

Jason Whitton and Hannah-Kathryn Wall in the Waitress 10th anniversary tour. Photo by Jeremy Daniel

“Everyone knows a Becky, a Jenna, a Dawn,” remarks Wall. “I think that will be what resonates with people. They can put themselves into any of these characters at any time, and it’ll make a whole lot of sense for them. We don’t try to sell glitz or glamor — we’re inviting people into our diner. We’re so happy to share this diner story with them, and we get to see all the in-betweens.”

Adapted from the 2007 indie film that was written, directed, and co-starring Adrienne Shelley, the show is also the first Broadway musical to have an all-female creative team. The original production includes Jessie Nelson as the book writer, Diane Paulus as the director, Lorin Latarro as the choreographer, and contemporary pop musician Sara Bareilles as the composer and lyricist. Abbey O’Brien, who worked on the original as an associate choreographer, now returns as the director of this production, maintaining the creative continuity of this empowering story.

“To have this show still be taken care of and put up by women across the globe makes a huge difference,” observes Wall. “It’s such a comforting feeling — something you didn’t know you needed but once you go in, you understand so much right away. It’s been fabulous to get the knowledge from Abbey.”

“Abbey has helped every step of the way,” continues Wall, who acknowledges the pride, awe, and agency she feels as she inhabits her character of Becky. “She’s always giving me insight of who my character is and who she’s allowed to be onstage. I’ve been given a note sometimes: you stand in that power, take it in. Don’t move from it. Stand and acknowledge, then move. And that’s been a running joke with us a bit, but she’s encouraged me to make Becky confident and self-assured as I can be, and stand in it. To have a director pouring into Becky [as the character], but also Hannah-Kathryn as the actress, is amazing.”

The care and attention in the show mirrors the care and attention you might find in a local diner, which has consistently been a modest, hardworking space. Its history traces back to 1872 in Providence, Rhode Island, when a venturesome man named Walter Scott began running “night lunch wagons.” These horse-drawn carriages served sandwiches, coffee, and simple meals, which could be savored at the curb or on the way home. The enterprising addition of seats several years later turned them into “rolling restaurants,” making it more convenient for customers, who were often late-night workers, newspapermen — and even theatergoers. Waitress’s emphasis on female bonds and support makes this American icon even more special.

“My favorite thing about diners is the familiarity as well as the welcoming energy,” Wall says, recollecting warm and friendly restaurant workers from her home in North Carolina. “It’s the warmest hug. You feel so seen and accepted. It doesn’t try to be anything else other than what it is, and you’re bound to get a treat in some form or fashion, whether a story from someone, or someone coming up to you and asking if you’re good, or just small talk. How’s your mom, how’s your people? You never know when a person needs to be seen.”

That’s another part of the show’s simple beauty and even sweeter than its pies. “If you go to a show and see a smaller, secreter, quieter version of yourself going through something and making it out in the end,” Wall explains, “that can be such a liberating feeling for someone who might not know where to turn next.”

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