Busted’s Matt Willis and the cast of West End touring production Waitress promise to serve up a tasty musical treat for Aberdeen fans.
Previously starring in Wicked and Flashdance, Matt says he’s never related to any of the characters he portrayed more than he does to Dr. Pomatter – a doctor who moves to a small town in South America where he falls in love with his patient, waitress Jenna.
“Every other actor job I had, I had to kind of find out who this guy is but this character is most like me I ever played,” said Matt.
“He’s socially awkward, he says the wrong thing at the wrong time, he’s very nervous – he’s a lot like me.”
The popular musical – adapted from a book by Jessie Nelson – tells the story of Jenna Hunterson, a baker and waitress in an abusive relationship with her husband Earl. With music and lyrics by Grammy winner Sara Bareilles, the show has been breaking and mending hearts of fans all over the world.
‘Waitress has a lot of heart’
Celebrating friendship and the joys of motherhood, the musical arrives at HMT on Tuesday November 23.
Matt thinks there are “a lot of reasons” why the musical has been getting rave reviews all over the world.
He said: “I think it speaks to a lot of people because they really understand who these characters are. Even though it’s an American show, it really speaks to all audiences.
“And the music is absolutely incredible. It’s a really clever, intelligently-written musical that has really catchy pop songs – you’ll go away and keep singing the songs even if you haven’t heard them before.
“So many people download the soundtrack and listen to it for weeks and weeks (after seeing the show.”
He also says the show is “ridiculously fun”.
“I don’t know if people quite expect how funny it is – it’s a proper comedy but it has such heart and integrity at its core,” said Matt.
Making history as first show with all-female creative team
Waitress made Broadway history in 2016 when it became the first musical to have an all-female creative team.
“You feel that different energy,” said Matt.
“At first I didn’t know what was different about it – I knew something was different but I didn’t know what it was. And when I found that out I knew that was it.
“It’s got a different feeling about it and it sends a very powerful message and you don’t expect to feel what you feel when you watch the show, but you’ll experience something that will stay with you.”
Having heard a lot about the musical, Matt was “blown away” by it when he saw the West End production and is now “really stoked” to be part of the show.
He said: “I saw Lucie Jones who plays Jenna and she was absolutely incredible. I thought it was one of the best things I have seen in a very long time.
“I went to see the show with one of my friends and we were both trying not to cry but we eventually gave up and we were sobbing by the end of it. It’s a beautiful story with a lot of heart.”
From vaccine centres back to theatres
After numerous lockdowns and months of uncertainty, Matt – along with the rest of the Waitress cast – is thrilled to be able to rehearse, tour and play for live audieces.
Matt’s last live theatre show before the pandemic hit – Christmas Carol at London’s Dominion Theatre – was cut short. The singer-turned-actor actually auditioned for his Waitress role on his last day doing the festive show.
“It was a sad day but then I had this amazing audition,” said Matt.
“The future of live theatre was so bleak at that time, nobody knew what was going to happen. So the feeling now (being able to rehearse and tour) is amazing.”
Since he wasn’t able to perform live, the singer – who rose to fame in the band Busted – became a volunteer patient advocate at London-based first aid charity St John Ambulance helping on the coronavirus vaccination drive.
He said: “It was amazing and I was really pleased to be part of that.
“It was beautiful when the elderly came in their Sunday Best. It was a really beautiful experience. The vaccination centres were really warm and welcoming places to be.”
When asked if there’s a character he’d like to portray in the future, Matt said that being part of Les Misérables would certainly be a dream come true.
“It’s a really special show to me,” said Matt.
“I’d like to be Jean Valjean and maybe in 10 years I’ll approach that subject, but for now I don’t feel quite ready – but that’s the role I’d very much like to work towards.
“I’m also a little bit obsessed with Beetlejuice on Broadway. Me and my kids listen to the soundtrack all the time and sing-along to it in the car. If it ever comes to the UK, I’d like to be in it.”
Busted success and first single’s 20th anniversary
While Matt is currently solely focusing on Waitress, he called his band Busted his “pride and joy”.
“It’s the gift that keeps on giving. I can’t quite believe I’m 38 and I’m still a professional musician. It’s something I didn’t see in my future. I went to drama school and wanted to be an actor – I never really intended to be in a band.
“Me and my best friend wrote a bunch of fun songs and ended up being signed and it took me on a completely different direction for 20 years now – it’ll actually be our 20th anniversary next year since we released our first single. It would be crazy not to celebrate that in some way.”
How to book tickets to see Waitress in Aberdeen
Waitress is at His Majesty’s from Tuesday November 23 to Saturday November 27. Tickets can be booked here.
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