Longtime Kitsap arts reporter Michael C. Moore dies at 68

Kitsap's arts community is mourning the death of veteran journalist and arts critic Michael C. Moore, who covered the region's theater, music and cultural scene for nearly two decades as part of a long career in newspapers.

Moore, 68, died Jan. 12 at his home, his family confirmed, after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer last summer.

He spent more than 15 years covering arts from the Kitsap Sun's newsroom, filling each week's issue of the Friday Kitsap A&E newspaper insert with previews and reviews of local theater productions, profiles on artists or musicians or features on new restaurants. Each week's listing of upcoming shows, productions and concerts was crafted with care, and Moore spent long hours in the newsroom painstakingly tracking down venues for information or carefully compiling the movie listings and times for every theater in Kitsap County.

Moore, who in 2004 took over as the Kitsap A&E editor and later became its primary reporter, spent most weekends attending theater productions, from Port Orchard all the way to Port Gamble throughout the year, critically reviewing each show with a depth, fairness and humor that isn't common to community newspapers. He even took a turn acting at one point with the "Lesser Known Players" group. He wrote in detail about the individuals in those plays, with easy recall of past productions the lead actors had been in across Kitsap County, remembering a teenager doing "A Christmas Story" at Bremerton Community Theater no differently than stars like Judy Collins and Arlo Guthrie or a headliner at the annual Bumbershoot festival in Seattle, which Moore religiously attended each Labor Day weekend.

"Michael's decades of experience and relationships with some of the biggest names in entertainment made him a trusted partner, and resulted in an impressive body of work..." the Admiral Theatre posted on social media following Moore's death.

The Admiral's headliners were regularly the subject of Moore's attention, with the historic Bremerton theater's upcoming show often featured on the front page of Kitsap A&E before a weekend performance. After Moore left the Sun newsroom he worked part-time for the Admiral, using his deft ear and easy banter while interviewing artists and writing previews directly for the theater to use in advertising.

"He will be remembered most..." the Admiral's post concluded, "as a quick-witted friend and an incredibly kind person."

Moore's career in journalism also included time as a sports reporter, initially at the Bellevue Journal American and the Valley Daily News in Kent, where he covered the Seattle Seahawks, Seattle SuperSonics, horseracing and other sports, and also worked for a time at the Bainbridge Island Review. He interned with the old Seattle Sounders soccer team after graduation from Washington State University, and attended Sumner High school after his father's job brought the family to the Northwest from California. He arrived at the Sun in 2002, hired as a copy editor who soon began contributing stories to the features section and often working with his daughter Kate in tow when she was a child.

"I always found him easy to access, and a good listener," said Alan Newberg, a Bremerton-based sculptor, art teacher and co-founder of the Collective Visions Gallery. Newberg was interviewed for what would be Moore's final series of stories for the Sun, which profiled a number of Kitsap artists when the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in the spring of 2020 and abruptly closed venues and performances came to a halt for a year. Moore's role as an arts reporter was cut from the newsroom that summer and the Kitsap A&E publication shuttered soon after.

"I know he really loved all of the arts, and kept track of what was going on. He made a great contribution to the community," Newberg said, lamenting the loss of the central role Moore and Kitsap A&E played in sharing news of what was happening at local galleries, theaters and more.

After leaving the Sun Moore was hired at Kitsap Public Health District to do community outreach during the pandemic. It was his job to initiate contact tracing after an individual's COVID-19 diagnosis, and later Moore would answer KPHD's COVID helpline to help people register for vaccinations, or answer questions about testing or quarantines. His gift for interviewing was an asset to that industry as well.

"They would call him back, just to talk," said Tad Sooter, the public information officer for KPHD and a former colleague from the Sun's newsroom, of people who interacted with Moore during the pandemic. "He really helped out sharing information a lot of people wouldn't know about."

"Michael was truly special -- a partner in Kitsap's creative scene who both challenged and promoted producers and performers alike," a statement from Bainbridge Performing Arts read after Moore's passing. "He was honest, kind, and funny. He and his unfailing integrity will be deeply missed."

This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Former Kitsap Sun arts reporter Michael C. Moore obituary