confessions at PT

Pictured: Sheree Plett, Jonathan Anderson, Lance Odegard with Ron Reed in the background.
Photo credit: me

Last night we went to another one of those story and song things at Pacific Theatre, this time called “Confessions.” These non-glitzy evenings are made up of readings (poems, stories, monologues, read mostly by Ron Reed, although yesterday Rebecca deBoer also read) interspersed with music. That is acoustic and various including folk, jazz, blues, country. Last night we heard from Sheree Plett, Nelson Boschman, Jonathan Anderson (also playing guitar, banjo and other instruments) and Alberta-based Lance Odegard, with backup of Nelson Boschman and Brett Ziegler- keyboards, Becca Robertson - upright bass, and Kenton Wiens - drums.

True to the confession theme, almost every piece had some aspect in it of guilt about not measuring up or failing. Ron started off by confessing how in his busy-ness he’d been neglecting Pacific Theatre and as a result was afraid the program was poorly put together. Of course by the end of the evening we realized that was all part of the act because, for me at least, the program was seamless.

Some bits I loved (in memory- not program-order):
- Ron’s crazy dream that exposed all kinds of insecurities
- Ron reading the poem “Plums.”
- Rebecca reading a piece from Traveling Mercies, where Anne Lamott confesses to getting livid with her son when he wouldn’t turn off the TV in honor of Ash Wednesday.
- Jonathan singing “Bitter Seed.”
- Ron reading a Stuart McLean story of a school dance and a girl in green and how a layering of lies led to a disappointing night, but also a lesson about how to live.
- Ron reading the story of how Christian students at one school put up a confession booth on campus in the middle of party week.
- Lance singing "Sunset is an Angel Weeping” and "Pilot Me."
- Rebecca reading a story of a girl who remembered the summer she was eight when her mother read the Gospels to them and she had a crush on Jesus – likened him to George of the Beetles, who were hugely popular right then. That crush subsided, and now she hardly believes in anything, though she wishes she could, followed by Jonathan singing “Long and Winding Road.”
- Sheree singing – in her plaintive voice – “I Am an Orphan Girl.”

(Here are the evening's credits - from Ron Reed's Pacific Theatre blog.)

I left the evening feeling wined and dined on soul food. I love these nights!

Confessions runs twice more – tonight and Saturday. (Tonight Sheree Plett is the featured singer, someone else on Sat.) If you’re in the area, go!