VIDEO: Diane Paulus On The Quirky Humor That Attracted Her To WAITRESS

The leading character of Adrienne Shelly's 2007 film "Waitress" has a lot of burdens to deal with, being stuck in a dead-end job, enduring an abusive relationship with her husband and then becoming unexpectedly pregnant, but the acclaimed stage director Diane Paulus says that what attracted her to the material was the quirky humor of the piece.

"She made the film so fresh and human and comic in the best way, where you're seeing real people dealing with the mess of their lives."

Bookwriter Jessie Nelson and composer/lyricist Sara Bareilles agree that along with the emotional depth of the story, there's a sense of whimsy that flows through the Broadway hit. The video focuses on the humorous spirit of WAITRESS.

WAITRESS, which was nominated for four Tony Awards this year, opened in April at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre after a sold-out limited engagement at the American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) at Harvard University in Cambridge, MA.

Based on the 2007 motion picture written by Adrienne Shelly, Waitress is the first Broadway musical in history to have four women in the four top creative team spots, with book by Jessie Nelson, score by five-time Grammy Award-nominated singer-songwriter Sara Bareilles, choreography by Lorin Latarro and direction by Tony Award-winner Diane Paulus.

In Waitress, Jenna is a server and expert pie maker stuck in a small town and a loveless marriage. Faced with an unexpected pregnancy, Jenna fears she may have to abandon the dream of opening her own pie shop forever... until a baking contest in a nearby county and the town's handsome new doctor offer her a tempting recipe for happiness. Supported by her quirky crew of fellow Waitresses and loyal customers, Jenna summons the secret ingredient she's been missing all along - courage.