The GoodheART Report – Waitress Rehearsal Diary: Weeks 3 & 4

Nina Goodheart, gap year intern, brings you a progress report on rehearsals for Waitress, the first show of the A.R.T.’s 2015/16 season. Waitress features a book by Jessie Nelson, music and lyrics by Sara Bareilles, is based upon the motion picture by Adrienne Shelley, and is directed by Diane Paulus.

We’re back with some highlights from the last two weeks of rehearsal!

– Celebrating the birthday of cast member Jeremy Morse, who plays Ogie, with – count ‘em – nine pies. I’m not even going to tell you how many slices I had.

– Staging “She Used to Be Mine,” one of Jessie Mueller’s solo numbers. From my perch in the wings, I was able to watch Diane Paulus work on the song with Jessie. They walked through the number, slipping in and out of singing, for hours. It was absolutely incredible to get to watch two theater legends in action. I honestly think this song could become a standard. (If you haven’t watched Sara Bareilles sing it on Prairie Home Companion, watch it RIGHT NOW: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pw4VVC5K9Yw. Sara is accompanied in this video by Nadia DiGiallonardo, our incomparable music supervisor. You should be Team Nadia. We’re all Team Nadia.)

– Jessie and Sara trying on fake pregnancy bellies, because that’s the kind of thing that happens at my job. (It’s on our Instagram. No lie.)

– Our first full run-through of the show for our designers. Although everyone who attended was a friendly face, there’s always an extra shot of adrenaline the first time a show gets an audience. It was very informative to string together all the scenes we have been refining for weeks and to start to get a sense of each character’s narrative arc. I can’t wait to see how it all comes together in tech.

– The A.R.T. 2015/16 Season Preview event. Some of our lucky subscribers were treated to a sneak peek of our upcoming season by A.R.T. Artistic Director Diane Paulus and A.R.T. Producer Diane Borger. Jessie Mueller even made a special appearance to chat about her experiences in theater and the Waitress rehearsal process in particular. Jessie and Diane Paulus spent some time jointly gushing over Sara Bareilles, with Diane citing Sara’s “natural instinct for the theater,” and Jessie extolling the way Sara’s “specific, yet universal” lyrics bring each character to life. Jessie also discussed the themes of the show and what attracted her to the role. Waitress, she said, is “about a bunch of messy, real people” and “embracing the duality” in those people’s personalities – “and also, pie.” Diane talked about being drawn to the story’s combination of whimsy and “emotional heft,” and Jessie added, “People need to see stories like this.”

Check back soon for another Waitress update!
Nina Goodheart is a full-time A.R.T. artistic intern, blogger, and stage management intern for Waitress. This show is making her very hungry.