![\"Tieisha](\"https:\/\/www.republicanherald.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/STT-L-MYSTIC-4-1018-01.jpg?w=620\")
<\/p>\nIf you look closely at the set of \u201cMystic Pizza\u201d when it plays in Scranton, you will see Tieisha Thomas\u2019 family photos.<\/p>\n
Designers encouraged the actress who plays Leona, a maternal figure who runs the pizza shop, to display the photos\u00a0to help create an atmosphere.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been great to see photos of them while I\u2019m on stage, just a little glimpse, kind of like they\u2019re with me as we travel from different cities,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The musical adaptation of the movie opens the Broadway in Scranton season at the Scranton Cultural Center on Oct. 23-25 with four shows. Tickets start at $59, with additional fees for online purchases.<\/p>\n
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Tieisha Thomas (COURTESY OF BROADWAY IN SCRANTON)\n<\/p>\n
![\"Kendall](\"https:\/\/www.republicanherald.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/STT-L-MYSTIC-2-1018.jpg?w=620\")
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Kendall Becerra, Lexxi Frilles, Tieisha Thomas, and Chlo\u00eb Lezotte in \u201cMystic Pizza.\u201d (COURTESY OF EVAN ZIMMERMAN)\n<\/p>\n
![\"\u201cMystic](\"https:\/\/www.republicanherald.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/STT-L-MYSTIC-1018-01.jpg?w=620\")
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\u201cMystic Pizza\u201d is a coming-of-age rom-com.
\n(COURTESY OF EVAN ZIMMERMAN)\n<\/p>\n
Show Caption<\/p>\n
1 of 3<\/p>\n
Tieisha Thomas (COURTESY OF BROADWAY IN SCRANTON)\n<\/p>\n
Expand<\/a><\/p>\n It is based on a 1988 rom-com best known as an early spotlight for Julia Roberts. The show adds \u201980s and \u201990s pop music hits to the coming-of-age story of three young Portuguese American waitresses at a Connecticut pizza shop navigating friendship, romance and their futures.<\/p>\n \u201cI think you should expect an absolute feel-good night,\u201d Thomas said. \u201cExpect to be entertained from start to finish. If you are a lover of good music, specifically of the \u201980s. But if you\u2019re a lover of good music, you\u2019re going to enjoy the show. The renditions of the songs, the arrangements, the acting, the dancing, the energy on stage \u2014 it really, truly is electric.\u201d<\/p>\n The numbers include \u201cHit Me With Your Best Shot,\u201d \u201cHold On,\u201d \u201cManic Monday,\u201d \u201cLost in Your Eyes,\u201d \u201cMad About You\u201d and \u201cTake My Breath Away.\u201d<\/p>\n Thomas draws on her mother, grandmother and Caribbean heritage to play Leona. \u201cI use their mannerisms, in the way that they approached situations and problems and family discussions, and just those moments that are hard.\u201d<\/p>\n It is the first national tour for each of the three actors playing the waitresses, making Thomas the veteran of the production. She toured nationally with productions of \u201c1776\u201d and \u201cElf: The Musical.\u201d Her off-Broadway credits include \u201cHercules\u201d at the prestigious Public Theater in New York City.<\/p>\n She also appeared in a 2022 episode of \u201cOnly Murders in the Building,\u201d on Hulu and Disney+.<\/p>\n Thomas had one line in an episode called \u201cFlipping the Pieces,\u201d as an unnamed rider on a subway platform who takes a photo of a key moment. She doesn\u2019t remember the line, but remembers the day as a great experience. The scene was shot in a defunct station used solely as a filming location. Half the space was set up for another show.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was crazy to walk into that,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n A staffer stood in for star Selena Gomez for a couple of takes. \u201cWe probably ran it three or four times with Selena, and that was that. She was so sweet. I have no complaints, it was such a great, great experience.\u201d<\/p>\n Showtimes are Friday, Oct. 23, at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 24, at 2 and 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, Oct. 25, at 1 p.m.<\/p>\n Tickets are sold at the Cultural Center box office at 420 N. Washington Ave. and online at broadwayinscranton.com<\/a>. Box office hours are Mondays through Fridays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.<\/p>\n The show is recommended for ages 10 and up.<\/p>\n Tickets are already on sale for the next show of the season, December\u2019s tour of \u201cBeetlejuice.\u201d<\/p>\n If you go<\/p>\n What: The musical \u201cMystic Pizza\u201d opens the Broadway in Scranton season. The coming-of-age story about three Portuguese American waitresses at a Mystic, Connecticut, pizza shop is based on a 1988 movie.<\/p>\n When: Oct. 23-25<\/p>\n Where: Scranton Cultural Center at the Masonic Temple, 420 N. Washington Ave.<\/p>\n