Twiddling my thumbs to figure out what to share with everyone this issue, I look up from my screen to see what’s going on in the world. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was going to march in Toronto’s Pride Parade on Sunday. Hmm, that strikes a bell, somewhere in my collection of musicals…
I open up my collection, and voilà—there it is!
bare is a rock opera that tells the rather Shakespearean tale of a pair of young, gay lovers. Peter is the sweet nerd, whereas Jason is the deeply-closeted jock. Their relationship blossomed during a holiday break, but they must keep their relationship hidden from their Roman Catholic boarding school. Peter really wants to come out about their relationship, but Jason vehemently opposes the idea. The pair audition for their school’s production of “Romeo and Juliet”, and gradually, hints of their relationship come to revelation.
Everything is complicated when Jason is cast as Romeo opposite to Ivy, a transfer student who brings along interesting rumours from her old school. A classic love triangle forms: Ivy wants Jason, which confuses him; Ivy is unattainable to love-stricken Matt; and Jason’s sister Nadia develops a crush on Matt even though she knows they will never happen.
Admittedly, it probably wouldn’t appeal to many people outside of our university age group—at most—but it is definitely worth mentioning for raising awareness for important issues on top of LGBTQ equality, such as adolescent homophobia, stigmatization, and bullying.
My favourite recording of it has to be the 2007 album recording, with best performer going to Matt Doyle as Peter; he characterizes his pain and inner turmoil perfectly—his lyric voice is also music to my ears.
I first became entranced with this musical because it reflects the power that music and music theatre have on us to get us thinking about controversial topics, such as LGBTQ issues, with an open mind. Personally, I never really know how to approach the topic. On one hand, I was born and raised in a conservative family, but at the same time, I recognize that times are changing, and besides, I know that I wouldn’t feel safe to be my true self if people were going to treat me differently because of part of my identity.
Besides, this show incorporates other elements that we have likely all experienced at some point in life. One of my favourite numbers, Peter’s “Role of a Lifetime” pretty much describes any teenager’s moment in time when they felt like they were forced to hide an important part of themselves from the rest of the world.
Ivy’s “All Grown Up” brings to mind moments in time where I wished that I could be a little girl again so that I wouldn’t be held accountable for the mistakes that I’ve made—perhaps not to Ivy’s degree, but you see the point I’m trying to make. It’s a reminder to us that screwing up is a part of life, but the real mistake is not learning from them.
bare is definitely a classic piece of music theatre for any teenager or young adult. Its story, characters that find themselves in melodramatic versions of the situations in which we have or will find ourselves, and edgy tunes are sure to win any young audience over.
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