Scott Bakula Returns to The Baker’s Wife: “Putting a Show Together Is the Best Time in the Theater”

After more than four decades, Golden Globe winner Scott Bakula is returning to a show that has long held a special place in his heart. At the Classic Stage Company’s press day for The Baker’s Wife, Bakula sat down with Broadway Time to talk about revisiting the Stephen Schwartz musical, now getting its long-awaited full New York production.

“This show has been with me since 1980,” Bakula shared. “I did a different part then, a long time ago, and I have grown and matured into this role. To have the show finally here in New York, with this cast and with Ariana DeBose, it’s just fantastic. The space at Classic Stage is going to be perfect for it.”

Bakula stars as Aimable Castagnet, a kindhearted baker whose arrival, alongside his younger wife Geneviève (played by Academy Award winner Ariana DeBose), disrupts the fragile harmony of a small, tight-knit town. “The town has lost their baker, and they’ve been a couple months without fresh bread, which in France might as well be the end of the world,” Bakula laughed. “When we arrive, it changes the whole dynamic of the town. My character is easygoing and likable, but as my wife and I settle in, everything gets thrown out of balance. It’s going to be a great ride for the audience.”

Bakula’s connection to the material runs deeper than his role. When asked whether he bakes in real life, his eyes lit up. “I love to bake,” he said. “I used to say you can hardly ever mess up baking if there’s butter, sugar, and flour involved. My son-in-law is a baker, so I’ve learned a lot from watching him, carrying around his mother yeast from home to home, working late hours, coming home covered in flour. I have such an appreciation now for bakers and the art of what they do.” He smiled when asked about his favorite pastry. “Baklava! It’s amazing, and I don’t even know how they make all those layers. It’s magic.”

For Bakula, who has starred in Romance/Romance, Guys and Dolls, Man of La Mancha, and television classics like Quantum Leap and Star Trek: Enterprise, the stage remains his truest artistic home. “Putting a show together is the best time in the theater,” he said. “You get to explore, meet people for the first time, and create something together. There’s really nothing like it.”

Directed by Gordon Greenberg, The Baker’s Wife runs from October 23 through December 21 at CSC’s Lynn F. Angelson Theater, with an opening night on November 11. Featuring a book by Joseph Stein (Fiddler on the Roof) and music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz (Wicked and Pippin), the musical brings to life a quiet French village where fresh bread and fresh gossip stir up love, jealousy, and redemption.

The Baker’s Wife runs from October 23 to December 21, 2025, at Classic Stage Company (136 East 13th Street, NYC). For tickets and more information, visit classicstage.org.