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If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. That’s become a proven formula for San Diego’s Blindspot Collective, which has just premiered its third immersive jukebox musical set inside a bar.
In 2023, Blindspot created the Ben Folds songbook-inspired “Underground.” In 2025, it was the karaoke-bar-inspired “Karaoke Dreams.” And this year, it’s “Dive Bar Time Machine,” an all-singing, all-dancing show featuring 75 songs, from the Andrews Sisters of the 1940s to Shaboozey of 2026. It opened Saturday in La Jolla.
Like “Karaoke Dreams,” “Dive Bar” is being presented at The Loft, a 120-seat bar/performance space in UC Sa Diego’s Price Center. The 12 performers sing and dance their way in and around the audience, who are seated at four-top tables and banquettes.
“Dive Bar Time Machine” was co-created by Blindspot’s co-leaders Shellina Hefner and Blake McCarty, in partnership with UC San Diego’s arts development project The Depot. McCarty also directed this production.
Having seen all three of Blindspot’s bar musicals, I think “Dive Bar Time Machine” is the best. The dialogue, dark themes and mini-dramas written to frame the songs in the past two show have been eliminated, so now the songs and singers themselves are the focus of the show. Creating plot to fit existing songs usually feels forced or awkward. There’s none of that in “Dive Bar Time Machine,” just joy.
The show begins when a group of friends gathered in a bar are swept away, both mentally and musically, by a spacey jukebox that drops them every 5 to 10 minutes in a different decade of music.
One of the best-sung segments honors women singer-songwriters of the ’70s, including Carly Simon, Helen Reddy and Dolly Parton. And the most fun era to watch is the dance-filled ’90s segment with songs by Sylvester, Donna Summer, Chic and The Weather Girls. There’s also a country-Western segment with Texas two-step dancing, a ’40s Swing music era, a harmonica-filled ’60s folk era, and early 2000s collections of both American and Spanish-language pop-rock.
The vocal arrangements by Taylor Lehmkuhl are exceptional, particularly the harmonies on Fleetwood Mac’s “Never Break the Chain” and Martha & the Vandellas’ “Heat Wave.” Micah Parra designed the multi-genre choreography, Colby Freel designed the club-style lighting, Evan Eason designed sound and Sadie Rothenberg designed costumes.
The 12 actors don’t play named characters. Instead, they are matched to the songs best suited for their voices.
The multitalented Tash Gomez is the show’s most versatile singer, soloing on numbers by Cass Elliott, Pink, Rihanna and more. Blindspot veteran Aiden Meyndert also solos a lot, starting the show with “Back in Time” and singing Bob Dylan’s “Blowin’ in the Wind,” among others.
Gravel-voiced Thomas Fisk heads up the country set with songs by Garth Brooks and Brooks & Dunn. “Karaoke Dreams” alum Michaela Nasello stands out for her smoky vocals on Billie Holiday’s “I’ll Be Seeing You” and Donna Summer’s “Last Dance.” And fresh-voiced Sophie DeLange, who performs “Daydream,” “House of the Rising Sun” and “Time Warp, is the cast’s strongest dancer.
“Karaoke Dreams” alum Cole Chinn and Rachel Dillon have the right old-school sounds for the ’40s songs “Don’t Mean a Thing,” “Cheek to Cheek” and “On the Sunny Side.” Big-voiced Tina Robin tears through anthems by Janis Joplin and Grace Slick. Versatile Hunter Brown ranges from the ’40s song “Blue Skies to the ’70s ballad “Space Oddity” to the ’90s dance gem “You Make Me Feel.” Fredy Gomez Cruz and Montse Cabrera soar in a high-energy Spanish pop-rock set. And creamy-voiced Sophia Kahn shines in Linda Ronstadt’s “When Will I Be Loved” and Charli XCX’s “SS26.”
The Loft sells food, pastries, coffee, beer, wine and soft drinks, but arrive early to order and get seated before the 85-minute intermissionless show. The closest paid parking can be found in UCSD’s Gilman parking structure. Follow the A-frame signs Blindspot has set up along Russell and Lyman lanes to reach the Price Center.
‘Dive Bar Time Machine’
When: 7 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays; 2 p.m. Sundays. Through Aug 9 (no performance Aug. 6)
Where: The Loft, Price Center, 3151 Matthews Lane, UCSD campus, La Jolla
Tickets: $35
Online: blindspotcollective.org
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