SEQUIM — She’s an authority on chocolate: its history, its flavors . . . and its powers.
And Joan Freed — aka Coco Bliss — revels in the sharing of these truths via “Chocolate Confessions,” her quick-changing, one-woman show.
“Confessions,” with its assortment of characters, opens today at Olympic Theatre Arts, 414 N. Sequim Ave., and stays for the weekend, with performances Saturday night and Sunday afternoon.
Curtain time for “Chocolate Confessions” is 7:30 tonight and Saturday night, and 2 p.m. Sunday.
Tickets to this OTA Spotlight presentation are $20, while active-duty military service members and their spouses will receive a $2 discount.
Performances of “Confessions” also include a chocolate-tasting party at the playhouse, starting about 30 minutes before showtime.
Freed, an actress and playwright based in Lake Oswego, Ore., cooked up Coco Bliss, owner and operator of a chocolate shop with a diverse clientele: Rocky Road, the biker chick; Divinity, the blond romance novelist; and others like Black Velvet and Natasha Kinki.
As they stop by the shop, they confide their cravings via stories and songs, from Broadway show tunes to pop parodies.
Mixed in with the comedy is some heritage a la Betty Crocker, Sara Lee and Ruth Wakefield, inventor of the chocolate-chip cookie.
Coco tells their true stories and does a bit on how underappreciated Wakefield is for her creation.
Message about passion
At the center of all this is a message of love.
Coco Bliss has found hers, as has Freed.
The actress has appeared in many productions in and around Portland, Ore., from “The Producers” and “Gypsy” to “Menopause: The Musical.”
She debuted “Confessions” about 10 years ago and has since performed it on stages across the West.
“What I like to give people is an entertaining time,” Freed said.
“They frequently come up afterward and say how nice it was to forget their troubles and go to a place where everything is happy.
“That’s Job One. But the show is also about finding what it is you love and doing that.
“Coco’s underlying message is: ‘I’ve found my passion. I’m good at it. I love my customers; I love making them happy.’ ”
When Freed sings Coco’s signature line, “There’s no business like this sweet business,” she’s also thinking about how much she loves musical theater, singing, lightening hearts — and chocolate.
For reservations, visit www.OlympicTheatreArts.org or phone 360-683-7326.
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Features Editor Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5062, or at diane.urbani@peninsuladailynews.com.
