Sara Bareilles in Waitress the Musical

The hit Broadway show Waitress is now in movie theaters in the form of Waitress The Musical, starring composer-lyricist Sara Bareilles in the lead role of Jenna. (Get your tickets right here!) We sat down with Sara to talk pies, musicals and much more. Here are Sara Bareilles' Five Favorites.

Fandango: What is your favorite song to perform in Waitress The Musical?
Sara Bareilles: It is either "She Used To Be Mine" or "A Soft Place To Land" because... I love them both for different reasons, which I'm not going to tell you!

What is your favorite flavor of pie? 
My favorite, favorite, favorite flavor of pie is Wild Blackberry, and that is purely because it is totally nostalgic for me. My mom taught us how to make pies when I was a little girl. And we had these big wild Himalayan blackberries in our backyard, so we would get these big bowls of blackberries and then you're making the pie crust and the sugar on the berries. It's just a very, very fond childhood memory.

What is your favorite movie musical?
I think I have to go with the original Sound of Music. I think it was a game changing musical. And I think I watched it literally every day, and that's like a four-hour film. I watched it every day for many, many, many, many months. And it was just one of those that changed the way I thought about art and music and storytelling.
 
What is your favorite memory from performing in Waitress The Musical on Broadway?
One of them is my final bow, the first time I was leaving the show. Again, not knowing I would ever come back to the show, so I'm like, how many times am I going to have to have my heart broken by this thing? But leaving the show for the first time and getting to the end of "She Used To Be Mine" and just the emotionality of that moment. The total release, and surrender, and the audience is so with you as a character at that point in the show, and I just remember it feeling particularly powerful. Then I have favorite memories that are like, oh, when the diner broke and it didn't move, and you had to bring the curtain in, and I started singing from "The Little Mermaid"!
 
What is your favorite thing about watching Waitress The Musical on the big screen?
My favorite thing about watching Waitress The Musical on the big screen is the fact that this film is a love letter to this show. By getting to use some of the language of cinema, you get to come even closer to these incredible performances by this unbelievable cast and crew and band. They're some of my very, very best friends in the world. And it feels like just a love letter to this community, to our fans, and I can't think of a more joyful time in my life than when this show arrived. So the fact that I have this forever is just a total gift.
 
 
Want to watch more movie musicals? Check out our guide: Broadway Musical Movies: Timeless Classics and Modern Gems