Three Kitsap troupes travel to state one-act competition, BCT advances to regionals.

Sometimes, Trina Williamson artistic director at the Central Stage Theater of County Kitsap says, community theaters can forget that the first word in their title is “community.”

“I don’t mean to say that we are snobby,” she’s quick to add. “But we tend to get too focused in on our own theater and we forget that there are other theaters out there.”

With a half-dozen different stable theater groups operating independently within a 20-mile radius of one another, there is a wealth of live theater in Kitsap County alone.

But even in such close proximity, the local theaters are sometimes oblivious to one another, let alone all the community theaters throughout the state.

Which is one of the reasons why the Washington State Community Theater Association’s statewide one-act competition, Kaleidoscope, is held every alternating year — to provide a venue for these various theaters to congregate and network and share their stories with one another.

“You find out that everyone’s the same, everyone has the same problems, everyone have the same joys and pains,” Williamson noted. “And you get to see some really great theater.”

Every other year, small delegations from community theaters throughout the state converge for a competition of one-act plays, the winners from which then travel to regionals and then possibly onto national and even international competition. This year the state contest was held at the Driftwood Players theater in Edmonds March 6-8 and three Kitsap theaters — CSTOCK, Bremerton Community Theater and the Jewel Box Theater — sent delegations to compete amongst a field of 11.

And they returned with honors.

The BCT delegation, performing a piece called “Overtones,” directed by Katrina Baxter Hodiak, was selected as a best production, joining the Edmonds Driftwood Players in advancing it to regionals next month, April 17-19 in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.

The BCT Troupe also received nods for Best Costumes as well as Best Director for Hodiak.

But they were not alone.

For the Jewel Box entry “Empty Orchestra: Life Lessons from a Karaoke Bar,” an original production written by local theater vet Gwen Adams, Sharon Greany received an Achievement in Acting award.

The CSTOCK troupe’s entry “Musical of Musicals,” directed by Williamson, picked up Best Ensemble, Crowd Favorite and Magic Moment awards, in addition to the Washington Treasure Award which embodies the “Best in Theater.”

Surprisingly, Williamson, whose been involved at CSTOCK for nearly 30 years, noted that the theater had gone to the state one-act competition only once before, noting both financial elements and time constraints as it’s just one more show to add to the already full roster.

But, she adds, it’s well worth it.

And now, in remembering that “community” is the first word in their title, CSTOCK and BCT are planning a staging of their Kaleidoscope entries to raise money for BCT’s upcoming trip to regionals.

Stay tuned to www.bremertoncommunitytheatre.org for more.