The Cast Photo by Madeline Rose

Why did Spring Awakening win a ton of awards, while Bare languished? Turns out that it never really fell into oblivion. It has been done in many cities in the U.S., Canada, and Australia, and all over the world: Manila, Barcelona, Tokyo, Buenos Aires, and others. They especially seem to love it in Seoul, where it's been revived six times. A theatre director in town told me that when he was casting musicals with young people in them, often the kids auditioning would sing a song from Bare. The kids knew about it. Why did it take so long to have a production in Albuquerque?

I give credit to director Mark Pino, who says he has always loved this show, and to Musical Theatre Southwest in partnership with the New Mexico Gay Men's Chorus, for giving us the opportunity to finally see it on stage. It shouldn't be missed, and I have to say that I enjoyed it and was touched by it more than by Spring Awakening.

The book, written by Jon Hartmere and Damon Intrabartolo, tells the stories of several students in their senior year at a Catholic high school, a boarding school. It centers on roommates Peter and Jason who are in love with each other. Peter wants to be public about it. Jason, the class star whom the girls are always coming on to, wants to keep it in the closet. Won't his father disown him? Isn't it God's plan that he should have a wife and children? Will he get into Notre Dame if they find out that he is gay? To the outside world, Jason has it all. Inside, he's a wreck.

There are a lot of subplots, all of which are things that teens and adults go through now, and probably always have. Mark loves Ivy but Ivy has her sights set on Jason. Jason's twin sister Nadia battles body issue problems because she's overweight, as her mother never lets her forget. Peter's mother Claire knows that he is gay, but refuses to let him come out to her.

The school play this semester is Romeo and Juliet. The music by Intrabartolo skillfully interweaves Hartmere's lyrics with Shakespeare's words. Peter is Mercutio, Jason is Romeo, and Ivy is Juliet, but the pilgrims' hands that touch are between Jason and Peter. Beautifully done.

The alternate title for this musical is Bare: A Pop Opera. As in most operas, there is tragedy, but here there's a lot of humor too. Upbeat songs, downbeat songs, dancing that is not really necessary but not too intrusive. It's maybe a little overstuffed, but very well constructed, and it never lost my interest.

Mark Pino is blessed with a terrific cast, all of whom appear to be the age of the characters they are playing. Much of the time, they don't even seem to be acting. The standouts are Lennon Vossen as Jason and Noah Smith as Peter, not only because they have the biggest roles, but because they're so incredibly good. Tasha Booth knocks it out of the park as Sister Chantelle and, in a dream sequence, Diana Ross. Megan McCormick is great (as she always is) as Peter's mother. Kyra Sprague really pulls off the variety of songs written for Nadia. Lauren Jehle is a fine actress/singer as Ivy.

I'm going to list all of the rest of the cast because they deserve it: Nick Goodwin, Hector Corona, Jacob Chavez, Kristin Mackey, Jessica Ubiera, Donie Torres, Leah Leyva, Milo Shimanek, and Brandon McDaniel. Not every voice is pitch-perfect, but they're young.

It's such a pleasure when the sound is flawless. Lando Ruiz gets credit for that. Set design by Mark Pino, lighting design by Brittney Baker, costumes by Robbie Zanotti, and props by Jordan R. Claghorn are all spot-on. Aaron Howe, who is also the artistic director of the New Mexico Gay Men's Chorus, does a fine job as music director for this show, and we have a live eight-piece band, which is a rarity nowadays. I don't want to leave out the unseen stage manager Arianne Cohen, who must be kept very busy.

I suspect that the audience for this show will self-select. There's a segment of the population that will not come to see a "gay" show, even though Bare is really a love story and is about more than that. It's a shame, because I think this show should be seen by everyone.

Bare, a co-production of Musical Theatre Southwest and New Mexico Gay Men's Chorus, runs through 8/31/25, at Musical Theatre Southwest, 6320 Domingo Road NE, Albuquerque NM. Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30, Sundays at 2:00. For tickets and information, please visit mtsabq.org.