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Who lives in a pineapple under the sea? 

If your answer is anything other than “Spongebob Squarepants,” then clearly you have been living under a rock for the last 24 years. Because whether you watched the show or not, nearly everyone knows of the annoyingly optimistic, yellow, square sponge who became a huge sensation after the airing of the Nickelodeon cartoon of the same name, created by marine science educator and one of HSU’s most famous alumni, Stephen Hillenburg. 

Now Humboldt Light Opera Company (HLOC) has brought the local legend’s creation back to Hillenburg’s alma mater, with The Spongebob Musical (book by Kyle Jarrow), which opened at the Van Duzer Theatre on campus last weekend. The show marks not only HLOC’s fiftieth anniversary, but also the company’s first big production in more than five years. 

“It was a lot,” Carol Ryder, artistic managing director for HLOC and director of the Spongebob Musical, told the Outpost in a post-opening weekend interview. “We haven’t done any big shows since 2018…Last year we were going to do a review, but, you know, COVID just started hitting again in the summer. So it wasn’t quite comfortable yet for a bunch of singers to get together. So you know, we just went out there and did it this time.” 

Unlike most local theater companies, HLOC usually only produces one show per year in the summer. Since HLOC operates out of a small studio space in Sunny Brae Center and does not own its own theater, the company rents the Van Duzer for its productions. But in 2018 the university closed the theater for more than a year for seismic retrofitting, making the theater unavailable to HLOC for a 2018 or 2019 summer show. Of course, HLOC also shut down production plans in 2020 due to COVID and this is the company’s first production since. 

Luckily, Ryder said, because HLOC doesn’t operate a full theater, the company has a much lower overhead than some theater companies and was able to save up some money to fund this year’s production. HLOC also makes its revenue through classes and workshops held at its Sunny Brae location, The Space, and was able to continue holding classes (many of them over Zoom) during and since the COVID-19 emergency.

Ryder said that after taking such a long break from its annual summer production, the company wanted to return with a family-friendly musical, but didn’t want to do something too common or traditional. HLOC picked the Spongebob Musical because it is “visually interesting,” Ryder said, and would be a challenge, but not so much of a challenge that it wouldn’t be doable for the small, local company. 

“We really wanted a family musical that was challenging and fun and with characters that would fit some of the performers here,” Ryder said. “We didn’t want to come back with just a traditional musical. We went with something kind of forward-thinking. There’s so much liveliness in the music and it’s music people can relate to in some way. We just thought it would be a good challenge for us.”

Of course, the local connection with the Spongebob creator was also a factor in choosing the play, Ryder said. Prior to his creation of the successful cartoon, Hillenburg attended then Humboldt State University (now Cal Poly Humboldt) where he majored in marine science and minored in art. It’s been said that Hillenburg developed his love for drawing during his time in Humboldt, and many locals have also claimed that Spongebob’s cartoon workplace, the Krusty Krab, was based on our own local Stars Hamburgers; although that rumor has pretty much been debunked. But Hillenburg didn’t forget about Humboldt, and in 2018 he endowed the university with a $135,000 grant to support its marine sciences program, just three months before he passed away from ALS. 

Finding ways to honor the late Hillenburg was something the cast and crew talked about, Ryder said, adding that they tried to find some people in the community who knew him, but weren’t really successful. But the show does include some references to Hillenburg during the pre-show segment, featuring Patchy the Pirate (played by Larry Pitts), who was the live action host for the Spongebob cartoons. 

And Hillenburg isn’t the only connection with Humboldt, as the show also features a song “Poor Pirates,” written by Eureka native Sara Bareilles. Unlike most musicals, Spongebob’s musical score is composed by multiple different artists, including David Bowie, Brian Eno, Cyndi Lauper, John Legend, Panic! At the Disco and the Flaming Lips. The eclectic and energetic music was another big part of why HLOC chose this show, Ryder said, although it did present some additional challenges, with the cast having to learn numbers that were in a lot of different musical styles. 

To give a brief description, without too many spoilers, the Spongebob Musical takes the audience to the home of Spongebob (played by James Gadd), Bikini Bottom. After Spongebob’s good pal, a squirrel from Texas named Sandy Cheeks (Fiona Ryder), discovers that an underwater volcano is going to erupt and destroy Bikini Bottom, all hell breaks loose as the residents of Bikini Bottom are overtaken by doomsday hysteria. The show has some surprisingly relevant themes, with characters arguing over whether or not they “believe the science” and different characters using the panic as an opportunity for their own selfish gains. Mrs. Krabs (Cindy Cress), which is based on the character Mr. Krabs from the show, is only concerned with money, whereas the villains — Sheldon J. Plankton (Casey Vaughn) and his computer girlfriend, Karen (Katri Pitts) — are looking for an opportunity to brainwash the community into buying Plankton’s food. 

Other themes include believing in yourself and the importance of friendship, as Spongebob and his best friend Patrick Star (Tristin Roberts) experience a rift in their relationship that they must overcome. Of course, no Spongebob show would be complete without Squidward Q. Tentacles (Bill Ryder), Spongebob and Patrick’s cranky, clarinet-playing neighbor, who has his own sub-plot of trying to put on his own dream performance and gets his own dazzling tap-dance number. Like most of HLOC’s shows, the musical features a large ensemble (too many people to list here) who range in age from nine to 79, Ryder said. 

Because of the show’s focus on aquatic life, Ryder said, HLOC is donating a portion of the show’s profits to the Humboldt Surfrider Foundation, which is dedicated to the protection of the ocean and beaches. The set for the musical is also made from many recycled materials, Ryder said, including plastic water bottles. HLOC is also sponsoring a Coastal Cleanup day on Saturday, Aug. 13 from 10 a.m. to noon at Baker Beach, which everyone in the community is invited to attend. 

Ryder wanted to say how proud she is of what the cast and crew have accomplished, after just six weeks of rehearsals, and that she is happy that HLOC was able to put on this show for the community, after such a long hiatus. Ryder believes that community theater holds a very important role in Humboldt. 

“It gives an opportunity for people to explore a part of them that is so important,” Ryder said. “So much of society denies that artists are important, and says the artistic side of a person is not valued. It needs to be valued, because that’s who we are, you know, underneath that’s who we are. Being able to express oneself, and seeing people that have the confidence to get up on stage is so important.” 

The Spongebob Musical continues its run at the Van Duzer Theater this weekend and the following weekend. For more information on dates, times and how to purchase tickets, visit HLOC’s website.