The 2015 hit Broadway musical is finally coming to general audiences with Sara Bareilles as the lead! Here is everything you need to know about the upcoming proshot.
After months of talk about the film being in post-production and circulating at the Tribeca Film Festival, we are finally less than a month away from its US release date of December 7th! Here’s what you need to know.
It Will Only Be In Theaters For 5 Days
This is the first and most important thing to be aware of! The proshot will only be available in US theaters for 5 days. Meaning, if you’re itching to get tickets, now is the time to check your local theater for times and make your purchases. Take advantage of the extra time before it hits theaters while you can.
The Cast is Not The Original Broadway Cast
This is not the original Broadway cast, as it was specifically assembled for the pro-shot and filmed on a set in the Meatpacking District in 2021. However, it includes Charity Angél Dawson, Caitlin Houlahan, Drew Gehling, Dakin Matthews, Eric Anderson, Joe Tippett, Christopher Fitzgerald, and the show’s composer, Sara Bareilles, as Jenna.
The Plot Will Not Be Changed
In case anyone was anxious, here is your heads up: there will be no changes to the plot, this will follow the musical as written and be staged similarly to Hamilton on Disney+. Everyone breathe a sigh of relief.
Broadway on the Rise
Over the past year, we’ve seen more and more the prominence that musical theater has found in people’s lives. With the upcoming The Color Purple movie starring Halle Bailey and the Mean Girls Musical film adaptation (with Renee Rapp reprising her role as Regina George), we see now more than ever not only the passion surrounding theater but the necessity of proshots.
Theater has long been inaccessible to the middle and working class, who may only get to see a show once in their lifetime, but still consider themselves fans of the medium, but proshots are a solution to that. There’s a common argument we hear throughout the conversation surrounding theater that it would cheapen the experience to see it on film or make people less inclined to seek it out, but it’s become incredibly apparent that’s not the case. Les Mis productions did not stop because of the 2012 movie. Hamilton, despite having released a professional pro-shot with Disney in 2020, is still on Broadway and still touring the country. It is, in my opinion, comparable to saying that people won’t go to concerts if they see an artist perform on TV.
Fans deserve opportunities to enjoy the things they’re passionate about the same as those that are able to seek these shows out, rather than be actively discouraged by the inaccessibility of the medium. That is why we must continue to support touring productions, pro-shots, movie musicals, etc.
With that soapbox out of the way, Waitress will be in theaters December 7th through 12th! Tickets can be purchased online through Fathom Events.
