‘Underground’ is All-Around, and You Might Play a Role

By Sandi Masori

CORONADO, California — I’ve heard of theatre-in-the-round before, but I’ve never heard of Theatre-ALL-around!  And yet that is exactly what you’re in for when you go to see Underground at the Coronado Playhouse.

When you walk into the theatre you’ll notice that it has been transformed into a pub of sorts, and the small round tables that are normally set up in neat little rows are scattered all around the room. Audience tables are even on the stage and actors are both on stage and in the middle of the room. Some of the actors may even serve you a drink as you wait for the show to start, while others play beer pong.

Once the show starts, it takes a minute to figure out what is going on as it’s literally happening all around you. You may even worry that you’ll get whiplash from moving your head side to side and trying to see behind you as well.

The play is billed as An Immersive Musical Mashup Inspired by the Discography of Ben Folds.  It’s a collaboration between the Coronado Playhouse and Blindspot Collective.

Basically, the show is somewhat like Rent in that it’s the musical stories of the workers and patrons of the bar.  We get a glimpse into each of their lives through song.  There’s also a through-line plot about a blossoming romance between two of the waiters.

It’s really hard to explain this high-energy show and do it justice.  It was unlike anything that either my companion Shani or I had ever seen.

It definitely takes a while to settle in and understand what’s going on. At times the music overpowered the songs so some were hard to understand.  There were also a few times that the song ends on a note that sounds more like a pause than an ending leaving the audience unsure whether it’s time to clap or not.  And at times the acting was a little flat.

Now having said that, we enjoyed it immensely.  At various points in the show they turn audience members into characters and guide them through taking on the character with simple props, and whispered instructions.  If I had to pick just one word for the experience it would be “FUN.”  Not that there weren’t serious moments.  Actress Sarah Jane Salonga delivered such a powerful performance as “mom” that there may not have been a dry eye in the house- mine certainly weren’t.  When she came on for the song “Still Fighting It,” it was like a light had suddenly appeared when you didn’t even realize it was dark.

There’s some debate as to whether the songwriter Ben Folds is Jewish.  Looking online, I found an article that says his family is Jewish, and he performed at Bar Mitzvahs, but claims to not be Jewish, so I’m really not sure what the story is there. What I can say with absolute certainty is that the actor that played the part of “Steven” was Jewish.  How do I know you may ask?  Well, that would be because that actor was me.  I was the lucky one plucked from the audience at intermission, handed a paper hat, and given instructions as to my role, turning me into both reviewed and reviewer.

I guess that the table we were seated at was one of the 3-4 tables that are pre-selected to pull “actors” from.  I’m not going to tell you which tables they were though, so when you go you can be surprised like we were.

Originally scheduled to end on July 23, the show got extended an extra week and will play through the 30th.

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Sandi Masori is a theatre and food reviewer for San Diego Jewish World.  When she’s not covering theatre or food, she helps authors self-publish, hangs out with her kids, and searches for the best sushi in town.