Picture: Johan Persson
The producers of Waitress have announced the West End production at the Adelphi Theatre is unlikely to return when the theatres re-open following the coronavirus shutdown.
Just a few days after the production should have welcomed back Lucie Jones and David Hunter who were due to return to the lead roles of Jenna and Dr Pomatter on 23 March 2020, the team behind the show has issued a statement on social media confirming the decision to close the London production in the wake of the current crisis.
The statement read: “It is with great sadness that we announce the closing of our beloved London production of Waitress. As you’ll be aware, we’ve had to temporarily lower the curtain at the Adelphi Theatre and it’s now unlikely that the diner will reopen once this period of uncertainty is over. If things do change and there is a world in which we believe we could continue a run at the Adelphi before 4 July, we will be in touch with you.”
Based on the 2007 film written by and starring Adrienne Shelley, the first major West End musical to boast an all-female creative team, Waitress features a book by Jessie Nelson and music and lyrics by Sara Bareilles. Tony Award winner Diana Paulus directs with choreography by Lorin Latarro.
A hit with audiences and critics, the musical tale of love friendship and perfect pies opened on Broadway in 2016. The show was nominated for four Outer Critics’ Circle Awards, including Outstanding New Broadway Musical; two Drama League Award Nominations, including Outstanding Production of a Broadway or Off-Broadway Musical; six Drama Desk Nominations, including Outstanding Musical; and four Tony Award nominations, including Best Musical.
Waitress began previews in the US in August 2015 at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it transferred to Broadway’s Brooks Atkinson Theatre in March 2016. The show arrived in the West End in March 2019.
The new UK and Ireland tour is due to open in Dublin in November.
Angela Thomas
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