One of the most memorable moments in Waitress occurs when the first notes of “Sugar, Butter, Flour” drift across the darkened stage. For Julia McLellan, who stars in The Grand Theatre’s current production of the show (directed by Rachel Peake and on stage until April 13, 2025), that moment was love at first sound.
“Waitress and Jenna have loomed so large in my heart for a long time,” McLellan shares. “I was working on Broadway in a show called Kinky Boots when Waitress was in New York, and any time my schedule would allow it, I would sneak in to see the show.” McLellan found something “magical” about Waitress – in the way that Jenna leads the audience through what is a “pretty heartbreaking story, with so much humour and care,” ultimately landing them in a place full of hope and optimism. “Playing Jenna has been on my theatrical bucket list ever since, so [the Grand production] has been a real dream come true,” she smiles. “It’s also a massive responsibility – so the joy and excitement is always tempered with a cute little dose of terror!”
Based on the 2007 film by Adrienne Shelly, with music and lyrics by Sara Bareilles and book by Jessie Nelson, Waitress centers on Jenna, a creative pie-maker. Living in a small Southern town and stuck in a troubled marriage with her controlling husband Earl (played by Lawrence Libor), Jenna finds solace in her talent for crafting wildly inventive pies at the local diner. In the show, the motif of “sugar, butter, flour” symbolizes the constants in Jenna’s life – and her eventual path to self-discovery. Jenna is supported by her quirky and loyal co-workers: shy and sweet Dawn (Elysia Cruz) and bold, no-nonsense Becky (Stacey Kay). But when an unexpected pregnancy upends Jenna’s world, she must navigate the complexities of identity, self-doubt, agency, female friendship, and resilience. A surprise romance, a life-changing baking contest, and her own quiet strength offer her a recipe for a new beginning.
For McLellan, that narrative hits uncannily close to home. “I come from a very small town in the middle of the woods – about 300 people – so Jenna’s story is in many ways an alternate life that I could have led,” she reflects. “I’ve worked in a roadside diner. I’ve dated the not-so-nice guy. And ultimately, my art and my creativity are what led me to forge a different path for myself. Luckily, I grew up in the version of a small town that fostered love, community, and support. But I deeply understand how, with slightly different circumstances, that same upbringing can lead to women feeling like they can’t ask for more.” What strikes McLellan most about Jenna’s strength is that it is not hers alone, but rather, the combined strength of her “village”: “This show is all about chosen family, and the power of letting the people around you carry you when the chips are down. And that’s something that I constantly have to remind myself of in my real life.”
Notably, this production also marks McLellan’s Grand Theatre debut – an experience has left an indelible impression and a sense of deep appreciation. “If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times,” she smiles, “the Grand is the real deal. I’ve performed on stages all across the globe, and The Grand is just built different.” Whether she is discussing the crew, the front of house staff or the creative company, McLellan judges them “some of the finest” she has ever worked with. She pronounces the level of dedication and craftsmanship at the Grand to be nothing short of “world class”. “If I could spend this entire interview talking about my love for Rachel Peake, I would!,” she adds. “But I’ll just say this: there are so few directors in this industry who perfectly blend leadership and vision with collaborative kindness – and Rachel is the gold standard for both. This is the second role I’ve gotten to create with Rachel, so I knew I was in good hands. The way she guides her actors, while simultaneously letting them experiment and bring their own ideas to the table, should be studied in a lab!!”
If Peake is delivering a masterclass in direction, then Bareilles’ score is a companion masterclass in storytelling through song. Music is the soul of Waitress, and McLellan’s favourite song to sing is “Soft Place To Land”: “First, the harmonies are magic. I really feel like it’s an opportunity to lock in as a musician and create a real sonic moment in the show. Secondly, it’s just me and my two girls – Stacey Kay and Elysia Cruz – singing about what it’s like to be a woman who dares to dream. The hardships and the disappointments, but ultimately the importance of keeping that flame alive. It feels like female alchemy up there during that number, and you can feel the audience hold their breath!”
The role of Jenna comes naturally to McLellan, who has built her career taking on roles that spotlight strong, complex women. “It’s funny,” she muses, “even when I’m not playing a character that’s traditionally known for its ‘feminist’ mandate, I often get reviews that say I’ve put a ‘radically modern spin’ on a character.” She quickly clarifies that this is not by design. Rather, “something in the way I create characters inadvertently has that river flowing through it.” Elaborating, she notes that there are “so few great characters for women on stage.” So when she creates one, she inevitably thinks about the barriers and challenges they faced at the time of the story. “What were the things they wanted for themselves, if they could only have their dream?” And “if it’s baked into the story (no pun intended) like Jenna or the Queens from SIX, it makes it easy to find that through line.”
McLellan notes that she has also played less fierce characters, such as Val in A Chorus Line, whose entire song is about getting plastic surgery. On the surface, the focus on physical appearance seems vapid. But McLellan offers a complicating question: “What if the only thing standing in the way of her dream was the patriarchy and its standards of women’s beauty? What if she outsmarted them, and got everything she ever wanted? That’s how I’m thinking of these women when I start working on them!”
From sneaking in to watch Waitress on Broadway to playing the show’s lead role on The Grand stage, McLellan’s journey is a testament to the kind of artistry, resolve, and quiet tenacity that define both this performer and this role. Waitress is a show that celebrates resilience, creativity, empowerment and agency, and McLellan brings all of that – and more – to the spotlight. Her performance shows us that sometimes, the stories that shape us most deeply are the ones we are destined to tell.
This Grand Theatre production is directed by Artistic Director Rachel Peake, following her acclaimed staging of The Sound of Music earlier this season. With Patrick Bowman as Music Director and Genny Sermonia as Choreographer, Waitress is a co-production with Hamilton’s Theatre Aquarius, to which this London-built production will transfer on April 30.
Sugar, Butter, Chat with Julia McLellan
SA: You’ve performed a lot of musical theatre roles across the country and on Broadway. What’s been your favourite, and what role would you like to play that you haven’t yet?
JM: I mean Jenna was the absolute top of the bucket list, but another favourite of mine was Doralee (aka Dolly Parton) in 9 – 5: The Musical. Coincidentally, Rachel directed me in that, too! But I am just dying to play The Baker’s Wife in Into The Woods.
SA: Do you have a go-to pre-show ritual or routine that helps you get into character?
JM: Jenna has such a rollercoaster of emotions she goes through in the show, flopping back and forth between comedy and deep tragedy really quickly, so I find getting my own emotions and nervous system in check is crucial. There’s no going off stage to reset and recalibrate if you make a mistake or are unhappy with a scene, so you need to be quite centred before the show. I usually meditate for about 15 minutes, warm up my body and voice, and then have a little chat with myself alone backstage- things I want to to work on that show, calming any negative self-talk, and just getting amped up to give the crowd a great night.
SA: If Jenna could invent a pie inspired by you, what would it be called and what would be in it?
JM: Oooh this is a great question because I love pie so much. I would be some kind of strawberry-rhubarb situation because I’m at times sweet, at times a little bitter, but I think the combination is pretty nice! Haha! Let’s call it “Sweet Tart From The Heart Pie”.
SA: There’s a scene in Waitress where you bake a pie live on stage…was that a tough sequence to learn? And have there been any memorable pie mishaps during a performance?
JM: Oh my gosh, this scene actually wakes me up at night sometimes! It was such a hard technical sequence to figure out. Rachel and I pieced together what we wanted to see in terms of actual pie baking, and then the AMAZING props department had to make our wild requests come true. I worked very closely with the stage managers and the props wizards to figure out the right consistency of dough so that it rolls quickly but also still holds together. It was so tricky, but this props team is the best in the biz.
The other complication is that it happens during “What Baking Can Do,” which is probably the hardest song in the show for Jenna, so nailing all that technical choreography with a complex vocal still haunts me! I think the result is cool though.
One of the funny things that happened was towards the beginning of the process, the dough was way too firm, and I only managed to roll out a dense little nugget. The audience probably thought I was the worst baker in the world!
SA: Is there a female performer you deeply admire, someone you’d love to share the stage with one day, or even portray in a future role?
JM: My all time favourite movie is Superstar starring Molly Shannon as Mary Catherine Gallagher. I think that role is so hilarious and punk rock and iconic, and I am just holding my breath until someone makes it into a musical, at which point I will duel to the death for the part.
Molly, if you’re somehow reading this, slide into my DMs!!
Waitress runs until April 13, 2025 on the Spriet Stage at the Grand Theatre in London, Ontario, then transfers to Theatre Aquarius in Hamilton, Ontario from April 30 to May 17, 2025. Reserve tickets at grandtheatre.com.
© Arpita Ghosal, Sesaya Arts Magazine, 2025
