Waitress' Sara Bareilles on Katharine McPhee Joining the Show: 'What a Dreamboat!'

Sara Bareilles is pulling double-duty lately: She’s starring as Jenna in Broadway’s Waitress, the hit musical she scored, and she’s rehearsing for Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert, which will air on Easter Sunday. As she readies to exit Waitress on March 11, Bareilles says she’s confident about the next headliner of the show, Katharine McPhee of Smash and American Idol fame.

“Oh my God, what a dreamboat she is!” Bareilles exclaimed to Broadway.com about McPhee’s upcoming debut in the show. “We're so lucky and excited to welcome her to the diner.”

Waitress, which garnered four 2016 Tony Award nominations, including one for Bareilles’ score and a Best Musical nod, follows the story of Jenna, a waitress and expert pie baker looking for a way to escape her abusive marriage.

“I got to spend just a little bit of time with her, and she's going to sound like an absolute dream on these songs,” Bareilles said of McPhee. “She just brings all of her wonderful experience—stepping away from TV, going into theater for the first time. She has so much beautiful excitement and joy coming into the process. It’s the best-case scenario.” 

Bareilles will play Mary Magdalene opposite John Legend in NBC’s Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert on April 1. McPhee currently stars on the CBS series Scorpion and joins Waitress at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre on April 10.