Famed San Diego singer/songwriter/philanthropist Jason Mraz can now add "Broadway actor" to his already lengthy resume.
The Grammy Award-winner will officially make his Broadway debut on Nov. 3 in "Waitress," playing the role of Dr. Pomatter -- the new guy in town who offers a fresh start to main character Jenna Hunterson (played by Betsy Wolfe), a waitress/baker languishing in a loveless marriage and a dead-end diner job.
Mraz succeeds original cast member Drew Gehling, and is set to play a 10-week limited engagement. The play, based on the 2007 film of the same name written by Adrienne Shelly, has been a hit on Broadway since the beginning of its run in April of 2016, with a U.S. tour in the works.
Mraz isn't the only big-name musician involved with "Waitress" either -- Sara Bareilles, a six-time Grammy nominee, penned the music and lyrics for it (and also garnered a 2017 Tony Award nomination for Best Original Score, to boot).
Adding Mraz to the musical makes sense: He actually guested on recorded versions of "Bad Idea" and "You Matter to Me" -- both of which appeared on Bareilles' 2015 album "What's Inside: Songs from 'Waitress'" and are performed in the show.
Mraz has been busy making local headlines lately: The singer/songwriter recently announced a special homecoming show at Spreckels Theatre on Oct. 14 to celebrate the 15th anniversary of his debut album "Waiting for My Rocket to Come." And this past February, he performed at Logan Heights' Burbank Elementary as part of Turnaround Arts -- a national program which coordinates the placement of musical instruments and art supplies in schools across the country and provides them with profressional development assistance on arts integration.
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For the unfamiliar, Mraz got his start in San Diego in 2000, and rose to stardom with “The Remedy,” a huge hit single off the aforementioned 2002 major label debut album, “Waiting for My Rocket to Come.” He’s followed that up over the years with several other hits, including “I’m Yours” in 2008, “Lucky” (a collaboration with Colbie Caillat) and “Make It Mine” (which he won a Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance in 2010). To date, he’s sold more than 7 million albums worldwide.
Mraz has also been a very active philanthropist over the years -- establishing the Jason Mraz Foundation in 2011, and has turned his attention most notably toward the environment, LGBT equality, and human rights. In fact, Mayor Kevin Faulconer declared Aug. 19, 2014 as "Jason Mraz Day" in San Diego for his charitable efforts.
As they say: Break a leg, Jason!
