Sara Bareilles Says Opening Waitress in London 'Is Beyond My Wildest Dreams'
Sara Bareilles crossed the Atlantic with boyfriend Joe Tippett to bring Waitress to the U.K.
Bareilles — who wrote and starred in the Broadway show about an expert pie maker, Jenna, who’s seeking a way out of her loveless marriage — is in London to launch the Broadway musical in the West End theater district. On Monday, she showcased some of the musical’s songs — including “Bad Idea” and “She Used to Be Mine” — at jazz club Ronnie Scott’s.
Waitress will open at the Adelphi Theatre on Feb. 8, 2019, making it the first time the show has been produced outside the U.S. after its two-plus years on Broadway.
“To now be coming to London to have a West End opening is beyond my wildest dreams for this show,” the musician tells PEOPLE.
RELATED: Katharine McPhee Makes Broadway Debut in Waitress
And Bareilles, 38, is keeping her options open on one day being in the London show.
“I say never say never. I love being here, I love this show and I love the idea,” she tells PEOPLE. “I know that I won’t be opening the show because I’m working on a record and launching other projects, so it just isn’t going to work.”
RELATED VIDEO: Sara Bareilles Makes Her Broadway Acting Debut in ‘Waitress’
But the chance join the cast again might arise.
“I keep doing it — they can’t get rid of me in this show. I keep doing it in New York,” she adds. “I’ve done it twice now, where I’ve stepped in. Maybe this will be my retirement plan where I’ll hop into the shows of Waitress all over the world.”
She will have to get accustomed, once again, to seeing other people singing her part — and the other musical numbers that she created.
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“When I began I thought that I would feel more of an ache to be up there and share the spotlight,” Bareilles says of the show, which has starred Tony winner Jessie Mueller, Katharine McPhee and now Nicolette Robinson. “But I got so much out of the watching the cast interpret the material and realized just how good they are and how much they bring out of the songs that I didn’t even know was there. I feel I got a master class in interpretation.”
Apart from wide acclaim, the show also introduced her to her boyfriend.
“We met on Waitress. He is here with me now,” she says. “It’s great, it’s great. Two years!” Asked if she has any long-term plans, she giggles before responding, “I don’t know.”
Tickets are on sale now for the London performances.
