It is announced today that British television star Blake Harrison, best known for playing Neil Sutherland in the BAFTA-winning E4 comedy The Inbetweeners, will join the cast of Waitress as Ogie from 17 June. He will take over the role from Jack McBrayer, as previously seen as Kenneth in NBC’s 30 Rock, who will mark his final performance on Saturday 15 June.
It has also recently been announced that Lucie Jones will take over the role of Jenna following Katharine McPhee’s last performance on 15 June, and Ashley Roberts will step into the role of Dawn from 17 June for a strictly limited summer season. The next Waitress London Cast Album Karaoke Night has also been confirmed for Wednesday 26 June – in partnership with Gay Times.
London’s brand-new smash hit musical comedy Waitress tells the story of Jenna, a waitress and expert pie-maker who dreams her way out of a loveless marriage. When a hot new doctor arrives in town, life gets complicated. With the support of her workmates Becky and Dawn, Jenna overcomes the challenges she faces and finds that laughter, love and friendship can provide the perfect recipe for happiness.
Waitress celebrated its official opening night at the Adelphi theatre on 7 March and the Tony-nominated musical is now booking to 19 October.
Blake Harrison recently appeared in the highly acclaimed BBC Drama A Very English Scandal, alongside Hugh Grant, Ben Whishaw and Alex Jennings. He is well known for his role as Neil Sutherland in the multi award-winning E4 series The Inbetweeners, the success of which led to The Inbetweeners Movie and sequel The Inbetweeners 2. His other recent screen credits include Prime Suspect 1973, The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret, E4 series’ Tripped and the feature film Dad’s Army. Upcoming screen credits include the comedy-crime film Madness In The Method, due for release later this year and the BBC’s new World War II drama World On Fire this September. Theatre credits include STEP 9 (Of 12) in the West End at London’s Trafalgar Studios and, most recently, the lead role of Michael in The End Of The Pier at The Park theatre, London.
Brought to life by a ground breaking, female-led creative team, Waitress features an original score by 7-time Grammy® nominee Sara Bareilles (Love Song, Brave), a book by acclaimed screenwriter Jessie Nelson (I Am Sam) and direction by Tony Award® winner Diane Paulus (Pippin, Finding Neverland) and choreography by Lorin Latarro. The production is currently touring the US and has also announced it will have its Australian premiere in 2020 at the Sydney Lyric Theatre.
Alongside Blake Harrison as Ogie, Waitress also stars Lucie Jones as Jenna, Ashley Roberts as Dawn, Marisha Wallace as Becky, Peter Hannah as Earl, David Hunter as Dr. Pomatter and Shaun Prendergast as Old Joe.
The full company includes Kelly Agbowu, Piers Bate, Nicole Raquel Dennis, Michael Hamway, Peter Hannah, David Hunter, Lucie Jones, Stephen Leask, Chris McGuigan, Olivia Moore, Nathaniel Morrison, Sarah O’Connor, Leanne Pinder, Shaun Prendergast, Charlotte Riby, Ashley Roberts, Marisha Wallace and Mark Willshire. Laura Baldwin will return to the role of Dawn in Waitress at the end of the summer.
On its Broadway opening, Waitress was nominated for four Outer Critics’ Circle Awards, including Outstanding New Broadway Musical; two Drama League Award Nominations, including Outstanding Production of a Broadway or Off-Broadway Musical; six Drama Desk Nominations, including Outstanding Musical; and four Tony Award Nominations, including Best Musical.
