IT'S LIKE A GRIT CITY STYLE, CAFFEINATED SOAP OPERA >>>

Randy and Aya Hashiguch, a husband and wife team, would like to introduce you to Dukesbay Productions, an independent production company created to encourage the showcasing of local talent. Placing center stage: the diversity of our local talented folks, including age, religion and ethnic and cultural differences often under-represented on the stage.

Enter Java Tacoma: Episode 37, Ashes to Ashes, Cup to Cup, an ode to the unintentional (though very intentional here) humor and dramatic storylines of daytime TV that plays heavily off the average Tacoman's undying adoration for our favorite caffeinated beverage. Java Tacoma: Episode 37 is the first in what is planned to be a yearly installment of this series.

Mick Flaaen, of Welcome to Parkland fame, Joseph Grant, Dukesbay founder Aya Hashiguchi herself, Betzy Miller and Laurie Sifford round out the cast of five, all portraying locals whose lives are interwoven as frienemies. Their weapon of choice: daily banter, including the usual jealousy and cheating, with some cannibalism a la Soylent Green thrown in for good measure.

*Cue dramatic music and gasps. * " They're making our food out of people."  ... Or in this case our coffee.

Writer Curtis B. Swanson tactfully and successfully crafts work brimming with humor, Tacoma lore and daydream sequences in this live soap opera set in a coffee shop.

Java Tacoma: Episode 37 alsoproves to be an appropriate preface to the future of Dukesbay's relationship with the community, being full of Tacoma trivia - usually in the form of a punch line. After all, if we can't get some belly laughs out of our own quirks we're taking ourselves entirely too seriously.

Did I mention the $15 admission includes coffee and goodies from Corina Bakery? No? Well, then, bonus!

Catch the final weekend of Java Tacoma: Episode 37, Ashes to Ashes, Cup to Cup at the Trinity Fellowship Hall. I suggest arriving early for optimal parking and snack options.

[The Trinity Fellowship Hall, Java Tacoma: Episode 37, March 18-19, 7:30 p.m., $15, 1619 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, dukesbay.org]