Last night's 20th anniversary concert for O Bar spanned 3 different stages and included a whole host of performers from across O Bar's history. Sure, there were celebrity guests like Vice Ganda and Frenchie Dy, but seeing some of the original O Divas from the Malate days had a greater emotional impact on me and many long-time "OBarians" like us. I've only been going to O Bar for the 16+ years since Tobie started bringing me, but it truly is our second home.
Case in point - Jaja was one of the first O Divas I ever met - and it technically wasn't even in the bar! As I discussed in my personal O Bar anniversary post, Tobie had brought me to Malate after a lengthy dinner "party," and we ended up hanging out with Jaja and other O Bar people on the street at the corner of Orosa and Nakpil. And across the years, I got to know more of the performers and the staff and eventually the owners of the bar, all because of Tobie. So it was all sorts of amazing to see Jaja and other OG queens like Lumina and Shue performing onstage with the rest of the O Divas. These are the moments that really pulled at my heartstrings.
This last year has also been a weird one in terms of finding friends to drag to O Bar, as our usual O Bar peers have been busy with different life events and whatnot. Thus, all the more Tobie and I have been going on our own without others, which just stresses why we go to O Bar. We don't just go there to get drunk or even to see friends in the typical sense. We're there to see the show and swap stories with the staff and hang out with the performers, even for just a few minutes after the last curtain call. I learned to love drag because of O Bar. My existing love for musical theater crossed over into my love for the different performers at O Bar and a great respect for what it takes to put on such big productions night after night.
Tobie and I don't travel much because we'd rather spend our money on O Bar nights. We still have our game nights, but we do our best to juggle our calendars such that we don't miss any big O Bar events as much as possible. We celebrate special events like birthdays and anniversaries at O Bar because we feel that such celebrations end up being more meaningful there than anywhere else or with anyone else. At this point in our lives, O Bar really takes up a very serious ranking in our list of personal priorities. I know there are others who feel somewhat similarly, but I also recognize we probably take things to a different level. And we have no regrets about this, nor do we feel weird about it either. We all love what we love, and we certainly want to continue to support this queer institution that has given the community and us so much.
O Bar is truly home for us, and the people who bring the bar to life are truly family as well. We stress out more about what Christmas gifts to get them than any other friends in our social circles. When we learn of any personal emergencies or health situations that any of the staff are dealing with, we do our very best to see if there's any way to help, even in our limited capacity. We're more likely to shell out for O Bar family members than some of our longtime friends. It's just how things are.
O Bar has an amazing legacy at this point, but many may just think of it as a bar that has been around for a long time, and it may not look as shiny as some of the other drag bars around Metro Manila. But there's a unique magic there, and I really hope that more get to experience what we have and learn to love the bar for the reasons we love it too. I doubt everyone will come to feel as committed to the performers and staff and the bar's continuing legacy as a whole as we do.
Tobie and I are pretty tired after last night. The show was crazy long, and the rooftop setup for the event was less than ideal in terms of logistics. But we got through it and still had a good tim,e and more importantly, we were glad to be there to help celebrate such an amazing milestone for O Bar. In the end, that's all that matters, I suppose.
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