'Pump Up the Volume' :: A Musical '90s Palooza

Jon Lorenz and Colleen Kollar Smith have done it again! This local dynamic duo is known for their hit 1980s-themed show "Mixtape" and 2016's "Miracle on 34th Street," "A Live Radio Play" (with Smith's husband Lance), are once again working with San Diego Musical Theatre to launch a new show highlighting '90s hit music called "Pump Up the Volume."

The show is a companion piece to "Mixtape," so it follows a set formula. "Seven strangers escape from the grind of 2000s-now into the 1990s and relive the pimpin' pop culture, phat decade that's all that and a bag of chips. Join them as they grunge, swing, vogue, rave, do the Carlton through the hits."

Of it, Smith says, "But don't make assumptions. 'Pump Up the Volume' has a little bit of something for everyone: Nirvana, Pearl Jam, U2, Bjork, Britney, Tori, Hootie, Shania, Alanis, Mariah, Celine,Tupac, Garth, Faith, JLo, Ricky Martin, NSYNC, Boys II Men, Christina, Spice Girls, and many more."

Smith and Lorenz met when performing in shows together in the early 2000s. "We ended up spending a lot of time in green rooms with a lot of people from our age group. We recognized that there was language we all spoke and people who grew up in our era had a similar vocabulary and that's what led to 'MixTape.' We liked the format of the show 'Boomers,' so we took it and switched it up a bit.

"We also did a survey-we sent it out to lots of folks-asking what their favorite part of the '80s was." "Pump Up the Volume," which was announced by San Diego Musical Theatre about a year ago, had a fully developed script in six months. "Jon and I were able to move fast because we had a model. We are both artists, have families and I'm the managing director for Moonlight Stage Productions in Vista. We started with an outline and went back and forth. Even last week during rehearsals, we were moving sections around for greater impact. This is why I am so thankful for our flexible and talented cast," said Smith.

While reconnecting with the '90s, Smith recalls, "Jon is a little older than I. The '90s were my high school and college years and he was just outside of that. We had a lot of fun figuring out which songs to pick, how they can flow and fit together. It is nice to cycle through the music, go back to what made us feel comfortable and safe, to take a little ride and escape."

Smith, who loves all sides of the theatre, stumbled into it thanks to her grandmother, "My older sister was great at everything she did and I was not. My grandmother made it her mission to find my 'thing.' I got into a dance class and I was my best self. I grew up in North County and did my first show on the Moonlight stage when I was nine. From there things naturally began to happen.

"In high school, I started choreographing numbers for the dance team and I took drama and choir. I spent a lot of my time on stage and people would tell me, you should step outside and try this, or that. I was lucky to have some great mentors."

As opening night draws near for Pump Up the Volume, Smith feels, "One of the coolest things about this show is that two of our cast members have local bands: Cassie Bowerman is the lead singer of her own cover/ original band, 'The Cassie B Project' and then Leonard Patton, whose jazz skills are unreal. Another tidbit... Our bandleader is Taylor Peckham, a singer-actor-keyboardist who just came off a tour serving as musical director and conductor, for 'Jersey Boys.' He is the youngest musical director to date and he is great. Throw in Brielle Batino, Joshua David Cavanaugh, James Royce Edwards, and Janaya Mahealani Jones, and we have the hottest band and an incredible cast."

San Diego Musical Theatre's new show Pump Up the Volume runs now through Sunday, September 10 at the Horton Grand Theatre. For tickets and more info call 858.560.5740, or visit them online at sdmt.org