Character guide
Jenna
from Waitress
Jenna is the pie baking waitress at the center of Waitress, Sara Bareilles's 2016 musical about a woman finding her own voice.
- Show
- Waitress
- Broadway premiere
- 2016
- Role
- Lead
- Music by
- Sara Bareilles
Jenna: from the film to Broadway
Broadway compared with the 2007 film
The musical lets Jenna sing her inner life. Sara Bareilles gave her She Used to Be Mine, an Act 2 ballad, along with What Baking Can Do and duets with both men in her life: It Only Takes a Taste and You Matter to Me with Dr. Pomatter, and You Will Still Be Mine with her husband, Earl. In Adrienne Shelly's 2007 film, Keri Russell played Jenna Hunterson.
Jessie Mueller originated Jenna at the American Repertory Theater in 2015 and on Broadway in 2016, earning a Tony nomination for Best Actress in a Musical. Bareilles herself later played Jenna, including in the 2021 return engagement that was filmed and released in cinemas in 2023.
Jenna: role facts
- Originated on Broadway by
- Jessie Mueller (2016)
- Notable performers
- Later played on Broadway by Sara Bareilles and Katharine McPhee; Keri Russell played Jenna in the 2007 film.
- Voice type and range
- Mezzo-soprano, F3 to G5 in She Used to Be Mine
- Songs Jenna sings
- What's Inside (with ensemble)
- Opening Up (with Becky, Dawn, Cal, and company)
- What Baking Can Do (with ensemble)
- It Only Takes a Taste (with Dr. Pomatter)
- A Soft Place to Land (with Becky and Dawn)
- Bad Idea (with Dr. Pomatter)
- She Used to Be Mine (solo)
- Everything Changes (with Becky, Dawn, and company)
Who is Jenna?
Jenna works as a waitress and baker in a small town diner, pouring her emotions into inventive pies while trapped in an unhappy, often frightening marriage to Earl. When she discovers she is pregnant, the news collides with her secret hope of winning a pie contest and starting a new life, forcing her to reckon with what she actually wants for herself and her child.
Her growing, complicated attraction to her gynecologist, Dr. Pomatter, gives her an unexpected outlet for connection and desire, even as she knows the relationship cannot last. Over the course of the show, Jenna moves from feeling trapped and defined by others toward claiming ownership of her own choices and identity.
Jenna's role in Waitress
Jenna is the lead role and the emotional anchor of Waitress, requiring a performer with both strong belting power and the warmth to carry the show's confessional, conversational songs. Her signature number, "She Used to Be Mine," is one of the score's most demanding and most performed pieces, showcasing raw vulnerability alongside vocal control.
Jessie Mueller originated the role on Broadway to widespread acclaim, and Sara Bareilles herself later played Jenna in an extended run, drawing fans of her music to the theatre. Audiences remember Jenna for her mix of humor, heartbreak, and resilience, and for a performance that turns baking into a genuine form of storytelling.
Jenna: frequently asked questions
How old is Jenna in Waitress?
Waitress never states Jenna's exact age, and the licensed show's character breakdown does not list one. She is a married diner waitress and expert pie baker who discovers at the start of the story that she is pregnant.
What does Jenna name her baby in Waitress?
Jenna names her daughter Lulu. Joe, the diner's elderly owner, leaves Jenna the diner in his will, and by the finale, set years later, it has been renamed Lulu's Pies.
Who played Jenna in the Waitress movie?
Keri Russell played Jenna in the 2007 film Waitress. Jessie Mueller originated the role on Broadway in 2016 and earned a Tony nomination for Best Actress in a Musical.
What show is Jenna from?
Jenna is the lead character in Waitress, which opened on Broadway in 2016.
Is Jenna a lead or supporting role?
Jenna is a lead role and the central character of Waitress.
Who wrote the music for Waitress?
Sara Bareilles composed the music and lyrics for Waitress.
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