County Employees Take on 'Chicago'

David Guthrie and Carmina Vasquez smile backstage in costume. Photo courtesy Carmina Vasquez.

Two County employees recently got caught up in murders, alibis and lots of cabaret — but it was all for show!

David Guthrie and Carmina Vasquez shimmied and sang their way to the stage for Coronado Playhouse’s production of Chicago, but the two didn’t even meet until after the show opened on Jan. 17.

“I didn’t know Carmina was a County employee until after the show started, because she was on ensemble, so we didn’t have much interaction,” said Guthrie, an information technology engineer with the Sheriff’s Department for 12 years. “We started talking backstage and found out then.”

Guthrie plays manipulative lawyer Billy Flynn, a major role in Chicago’s plot, as he’s pivotal to main character Roxie Hart’s fate. Vasquez is one of the featured ensemble dancers— a talent she’s been displaying on stage for about 25 years, most recently in productions of Grease and Pippin.

“I joked with David that we’re County employees by day, jazz slayers by night,” said Vasquez, who works in Community and Housing Development. “It gets harder to find outlets to dance as an adult. (Community theater) is a great way to keep it up.”

Landing a lead role is nothing new to Guthrie, though theater acting is. The three-year actor has played Jean Valjean in Les Misérables, Marco in Carnival! and Sheriff Ed Earl in The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. But his passion growing up? Singing.

“It was quite a change to go from singing to performing and taking on a persona,” Guthrie said. “The best thing about it is the people I meet. I’ve been learning so much these past three years, and it’s just been so fun.”

Both Guthrie and Vasquez said the combination of rehearsals, shows and work make the weeks run together.

“It is tiring,” Vasquez admitted. “I haven’t had a day off since I started. It’s like work, it’s definitely another job, but it’s very rewarding.”

Guthrie and Vasquez’s colleagues came out to see shows, supporting the two’s passion for taking the stage.

“I have a tight-knit group of people that come and see me perform in each of my shows since I started,” Guthrie said. “They’ve been really supportive.”

And not just the colleagues, but their significant others as well.

“The director of my office went with his wife. Everyone in my office has gone!” she said. “It’s fun to encourage a date night and share my passion and hobby.”

The pair said being able to perform at the Coronado Playhouse (the second time for them both) is a real treat, as the community theater goes above and beyond its normal duties.

The Playhouse raised money for the Make-a-Wish Foundation during the run of the show. During the opening weekend of Chicago in January, a teen from the organization got to perform in the show as a reporter in multiple scenes.

“It was a really neat experience to work with him and have him be a part of the show,” Guthrie said. “I think that’s what makes Coronado (Playhouse) a cool experience to work with because they do so much outside of just being a theater.”

As for the future, Guthrie has plenty of upcoming productions to keep him busy, including I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change, performed at Patio Playhouse in Escondido, and Little Women scheduled to show sometime this summer.

“The opportunities keep coming… I’ll take a break after Little Women,” Guthrie, a father of two, said. “I’d like to spend time with my family.”

Vaquez agreed.

“I’ll definitely audition for more shows, as long as they need dancers,” she said. “I’ll try for one show a year. You get so excited and then it ends… I don’t know what I’m going to do with myself on that first Friday off!”

Want to see these County employees sing and dance their hearts out? Chicago has been extended for an extra weekend, Feb. 28-March 2. Seats are still available online at www.coronadoplayhouse.com or by calling the box office at (619) 435-4856.

The whole "Chicago" cast in action. Photo courtesy David Guthrie.