DO YOU KNOW SOMEONE WHO wakes up most mornings screaming bloody murder?
Yes, I know that person.
Do you know someone that wants to stay in bed all day after waking up in cold sweats?
Yes, I know that person.
I am that person.
I am also that person that stands under the shower head staring at the drain making up excuses for calling in sick. Sick of getting out of bed! Sick of overpriced and over taxed coffee! Most of all, I am sick of commuting!
Let’s be honest here…
The public transportation in Kitsap County is mediocre at best. The only thing you can count on is weirdos and waiting. Wait for the bus that comes once an hour, wait 20 minutes or more for your transfer. All the while waiting for the weirdos to get weirder the entire time. Then if you are catching a ferry… wait for it, wait for it… You will more often than not wait for the ferry next because ferries and busses rarely line up. At least the city bus is on time, and often on the half hour. Now for the ferry boat… Who f’in knows what is going to happen. Is the boat running on time?
Or better yet…is it even running at all?
I was born and raised here so I’m just bitching into the wind here. I know the game. This game is as old as the game of baseball. Wow, I went on a tangent there, I must have some real deep issues with commuting. I should work on that.
So here we are. It’s early morning. The sun is out. It’s Friday. And I only moderately care. I’m staring down at the coffee stains on the tile floor that are reflecting off the back of some business mans leather shoes.
I hear someone talking to me, so I place my order: “16 ounce Mocha, hot, no whip.”
Then I look up, and I see this skinny kid holding out some sort of piece of paper. “Mmm, no thanks” is my first reaction simply because I think it’s probably something to do with politics or religion. It is Easter weekend so it’s probably some religious propaganda. I play bar rules: ‘We don’t talk politics, and we don’t talk religion.’
More than anything I just need a coffee to mask this mild hangover. I don’t need any advice, and God, the last thing I need is opinions or beliefs. Then the kid says “mumble, mumble, Jesus Christ mumble Star.”
I focus on the kid for the first time.
I stink eye him. “What are you saying?”
“Would you like a ticket to the play I’m in?” he says sheepishly. “It’s Jesus Christ Superstar.”
I say, “Is it Christmas already?”
He looks at me strangely, then he goes on to tell me it’s a rock opera from the 1960’s, and its showing at the Bremerton Community Theater. I used to go to the Bremerton Community Theater when I was a kid to see my auntie do musicals like Annie, The Nutcracker, Rocky Horror, and, of course, Jesus Christ Superstar.
I reach out a little shaky from my Thursday night nightcap, and I accept the young gentlemen’s offer. Then I order my coffee—from an actual barista this time—and I go on my way.
Standing in line for the ferry I can’t help but think of my late auntie singing and dancing around like a hippie. I’m smiling with tears in my eyes. If I look like I’m having an episode, it’s probably because I kinda am. It’s a good episode, but an episode all the same. I find myself tapping my foot, then humming “what’s the buzz, tell me what’s a-happening,” and it’s taken my mood into an opposite direction. My typical doom and gloom personality is now smiling, tapping their foot, humming with the Friday morning before Easter sunshine blasting in my face through the dirty ferry terminal platform glass.
That’s it, I’m using this theater ticket, and taking myself on a Friday night date. All I know is it better be loud, and it better rock, because, by God… Jesus Christ Superstar is a Rock Opera!
It’s so funny, I’m getting more and more stoked, the more I think about it. I’m remembering more songs, more memories are popping up. Hell, I’m even sitting here in the spring time thinking about Christmas. Remembering my old hippie auntie. I can even smell her orange spice tea. Jesus Christ look at me!
This is not review or an advertisement, this is just a coffee-induced theatrical memory of someone uncomfortably waiting in line for the Bremerton ferry. Here’s something I found on the community theater’s website that’s more informative to people that might not have that close of a relationship with the ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ story. I thought it was kinda funny so I lifted it:
[“Content Advisory: The musical features contemporary and sometimes provocative language, but no strong or offensive language, . It deals with themes of betrayal, sacrifice, and political unrest, all presented in a dramatic and musical context; some dark humor and irony, particularly in the portrayal of certain characters and situations; includes religious and supernatural themes, focusing on the life and crucifixion of Jesus Christ; mature themes related to betrayal, death, and sacrifice, but they are handled within the context of the story; some depiction of violence, particularly related to a suicide and the crucifixion. Some suggestive situations and innuendos, particularly involving Mary Magdalene, but nothing explicit.”] // SARA DAVID
‘JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR’ The Tim Rice/Andrew Lloyd Weber Rock Opera plays thru May 4 at Bremerton Community Theatre. BCT presents ‘Gutenberg! The Musical’ May 16-25. Tickets, showtimes and more at bcatshows.com
