If you watched the airborne choreography of “Pinball Wizard” from “The Who’s Tommy,” the prop-centered “Hip to Be Square” from “The Heart of Rock and Roll” and the meditative breathwork of “A Soft Place to Land” from “Waitress,” you might not believe this movement originated from one mind. But choreographer Lorin Latarro is responsible for them all.
“I don’t believe in a choreographer having one style of dance [across every show],” Latarro told Broadway News. “That’s really good for the choreographer’s legacy — I don’t know how good that is for the shows’ dramaturgy.” With every musical, Latarro puts story and the psychology behind the story first.
Inspired by the work of late Russian actor-director Michael Chekhov, Latarro’s work for “Waitress” focused on externalizing the internal. “What is [our protagonist, Jenna] thinking about? What does she want?” Latarro considered when choreographing the Sara Bareilles-scored musical. Jenna is a waitress trapped in an abusive marriage who yearns to be loved and safe — and earning first prize in a pie-baking competition could be her ticket to that future. “It’s all her verbs: She’s dreaming, she’s winning, she’s loving — all things she can’t do when the music’s not playing, because her life is about oppression and abuse. When she’s singing, her world changes.”
