After appearing in off-Broadway's Heathers, Showtime's Happyish, and singing one of our favorite covers of Joe Iconis' "Broadway, Here I Come", Molly Hager makes her Broadway debut in the hit musical Waitress. Hager plays the role of Jenna's (Jessie Mueller) mom in flashbacks and totally catches your eye in the musical's ensemble. BroadwayBox caught up with Hager to talk about Waitress' memorable opening night, her most mortifying audition story, and Stranger Things.
1. The line or lyric from Waitress I find myself thinking about most outside the theatre:
"We're all just looking for a little less crazy."
2. My go-to diner order:
Spinach and mushroom omelette and an entire pot of coffee.
3. When I look back on my Broadway debut in Waitress, my mind will automatically flash to:
Two things: First, how I happy-cried off all of my mascara after our first preview. And second, how people at our opening night party asked me for my autograph and made me feel super fancy only to find out later that they all thought I was Demi Lovato.
4. One thing fans probably don’t know about Heathers: The Musical:
Jessica Keenan Wynn (who played Heather Chandler) and I would drink Soy Chai Mistos from Starbucks before almost every show (I know... I wanna punch me too).
5. If you are only listening to one Molly & the Memphis Thunder song, go with:
First of all, I'm flattered. I'm gonna say go with "Oh Well" but ALSO go with "Repeat In Time."
6. Musical that changed my outlook on the world after I saw it:
UGGGHHH I KNOW EVERYONE SAYS IT BUT RENT.
7. My most memorable audition story:
Before I tell this story, it is important to note that I am actually horrible at auditions. I get insanely nervous and shake and break out in rashes across my chest/neck/face making me the most attractive girl in the world. I also lose all ability to make rational decisions of any kind.
Anyway, the day before my Dogfight audition, I went to another audition where I gave myself a pep talk beforehand and probably said something like, "Just be cool. Go in there and be fun and friendly! Shake everyone's hand and be a normal person!" Determined, I walked into the room and immediately went to shake some hands but quickly discovered that there were about 10-12 people behind the table. Well, you can't just shake a few hands and not the rest of them, right? They might feel sad! So, I proceeded to individually greet and shake. Every. Person's. Hand. We all just marinated in the awkwardness together. It was about 40 seconds of near-silence and me wishing for death. It was brutal.
So before Dogfight, I had learned my lesson. I gave myself yet another pep talk: "Just be cool. Go in there and be fun and friendly! Do NOT shake ANYONE'S hand and be a normal person!" I walked into the room where THANK GOD I told myself not to shake hands because there were like, 15-20 people there this time. I gave my music to the accompanist and said hello to the room. Before starting to sing, sweet Joe Mantello came over to personally introduce himself to me. He stuck out his hand expecting a nice, warm, handshake, but instead, I just stared at his hand in fear. I DID NOT SHAKE HIS HAND. I JUST STARED AT IT LIKE IT WAS THE CREATURE FROM STRANGER THINGS. It was mortifying.
8. Role that I want to revisit someday, somewhere:
No revisiting! Only originating!
9. Last film or TV performance that left me speechless:
The little boy who played Dustin in Stranger Things!!!!! BE MY BEST FRIEND!!!!
...yes I know this is time #2 of me mentioning Stranger Things. Who cares.
10. If my life were a musical, the breakout song would be titled:
"Anything For A Laugh"
Head to Broadway's Brooks Atkinson Theatre to see Molly Hager's debut performance in 'Waitress'.
