BARE: A POP OPERA Reaction - Ep. 21 of Musicals I Know Nothing About

the line that gets me every single time is „our love was pure and nothing else brought me closer to God“ I just can‘t

“Will Peter end up playing Juliet” oh god the optimism, the joy, I’m so sorry

Every time you say this is going to end well I die a little more inside.

What's even sadder about this musical is the composer eventually ended his life a few years after making this musical. Echoing Jason in a dark way. And Quiet Night At Home was the last piece of music he played on his piano before he died.

Based on some of the lyrical and acting choices in Cross for the Priest—the desperation of "You're just a child, and things will change, I promise / You're young, you have time on your side", and the emotional weight with which that entire last paragraph from "Let the church be your spine / Don't question too much, and you'll get along fine" onwards is delivered—it's always been my Very Sad Headcanon that the Priest is a closeted gay man who's done exactly what he's advising and is trying, as best he can, to help Jason.

So, I actually did a staged reading of this show at the end of my freshman year of college (I was the stage manager), and I fell in love. It's got some cringe moments, since it was meant to take place in the early 2000's, but it's a really impactful story. (Not so) Fun Fact: Matt's speech at the start of Jason's memorial/funeral "I'd like to start with just a... If we could take a moment... If only we were silent, or we had spoken..." is actually in Peter's nightmare from the very beginning of the musical, word for word, still said by Matt. Peter thinks it's his funeral in the nightmare, showing that Peter's worst nightmare came true, just not in the way he thought. It also foreshadows Matt's role in it all; if he had just stayed silent about what he saw, or if he had spoken in acceptance and support instead of jealousy and anger, Jason wouldn't have done what he did.

BARE: A POP OPERA YES! I don't normally comment on videos but holy shit, this show is so underrated and doesn't get the recognition it deserves. I'm ready to watch this and drown in my tears again, let's gooo

I cried the first time I heard Role of a Lifetime XD And yes, Lucas' white boy rap is supposed to be cringey :P Also the musical was written in the late 90's!

One detail about this musical that I have always loved is how the only time the actual word "gay" is used is in the positive words of sister chantelle. Either way, in general, this is my favorite musical and Im glad to see you go through all of the hard emotions it brings with it. Its a masterpiece all the way through in my opinion.

u figured out that Jason is trouble in less than 5 minutes, thats impressive welcome to the popopera side of bway

Watching this was physically painful because I knew how it ended but SO WORTH IT. I was raised catholic (now Jewish) and I'm gay and I found this musical right as I was coming into both of those things and it helped so much to see a depiction of a gay catholic who never questioned his faith despite having every reason to do so

The first time I watched bare I kept going "no this can't get sadder" AND IT JUST KEPT GOING. I love this show so much

Matt is such an interesting character to me, especially if you read between the lines or have seen different actors interpretations of him. He has a good heart but is so consumed by his jealousy of Jason to the point it makes him into the antagonist of sorts. Jason seemingly has everything to Matt. He gets the role of Romeo over him, he is valedictorian, he has wooed Ivy who Matt clearly has feelings for and in a way I believe he's even jealous that Jason gets Peter. Towards the end of Are you there, the music shifts into a playful interaction between Matt and Peter where in the productions I've seen ends with them waltzing with each other and Matt laughing asking who's leading to which Peter says he doesn't know. Matt then asks softly to Peter "Well who usually leads?" Pretty much saying a) I know about you two and b) and quite possibly Matt once again wishing he was in Jason's shoes. Because Jason even gets Peter, someone that genuinely loves him. Something Matt wants so deeply c) it could be a way of Matt saying in desperation "Well I could be your Jason". Matt may or may not have any sort of romantic feelings towards Peter but an intense desire to be needed by someone. To be someones first choice. You can hear the interaction on the album version. I have always thought that was a masterful little interaction that is so telling of his character.

I legit yelled, "Oh no, my sweet summer child! You're not ready!" And indeed, you were not ready. Glad you enjoyed it overall, despite the downer that it is. It's one of my favorite shows because it shows homosexual characters in a religious environment in a fairly neutral way. Most of the homophobia is in Peter's head (yeah, the opening part is also a dream sequence if you couldn't tell), but as you said he keeps his faith through to the end which is different from most situations like this portrayed in modern media. The language can be a bit crass (hey Nadia), but it's a decent show.

The album cover breakdown blew my mind wow. And the nuns and comedy line is dead on! Such a perfect combination!!! Also I feel very called out on that Avril Lavigne bit 😅 Also: It was released in the 2000s! 2008 to be more specific!

When I first listened to this musical I was like a ghost the whole rest of that day. Not only was is so heartbreaking and emotionally overwhelming bug there's also so much to think about after listening to it. It's such an interesting and smart show you just have to pay attention and listen to it a few times to really get all of the details. Like the amount of foreshadowing they managed to slip in there without me picking up on the fact that Jason was gonna die at the end is really very impressive.

Very hard breaking to hear you say "it'll have a happy ending, it has to" and knowing how it ends,,

While the ending is sad yes. It’s surprisingly a more bitter sweet ending for Peter. He looks forward to a brighter future being out of the closet and getting to live his life as his truest self.

Confession: I straight up loled when you said you weren't sure whether to trust Jason in "You and I". Also, I love that Bare is getting more traction! It's desperately underrated!

I love this musical. I was a bi boy brought up in Catholism and this show nails how it felt. I really enjoyed your reactions to this; it's fun to watch someone connect the dots and make guesses and just enjoy the music and experience for the first time. I saw you "seeing" the characters as their layers grew. They were savage and often mean, but also so vulnerable and deserving of better than most of them get. I love how the first song in the show foreshadows the last. The first song is a dream sequence and Peter guesses it's his funeral, but he's obviously wrong. Also, Ephiphany has the title of the musical too, for what it's worth. One of the most important contrasts in the show to me is how Sister Chantelle reacts to Peter being gay versus how the priest reacts to Jason. Chantelle shows how religion SHOULD embrace everyone. The priest shows how damaging it is when religion excludes and demonizes people. Peter learns to accept himself; Jason learns he's right to hate himself which leads to his overdose. Thanks again for this video. I hope it helps people find Bare. I think there are people who need to hear it.