It’s the 1920s in Los Angeles, during the height of prohibition, and those close to the family were invited to attend the wake of John Telletino, the former leader of The Collective crime syndicate. The venue of choice is Telletino’s favorite speakeasy with all sorts of fun activities like gambling and entertainment. However, there is now a power vacuum with prominent figures looking to fill that spot, and a night of paying respects has turned into betrayals and even death.

Last Call Theatre is back at the Hollywood Fringe Festival, and it’s continuing on with a new interactive and immersive in-person show called The Collective. Guests were transported to the past thanks to the chosen venue, The 3 Clubs Cocktail Lounge, which brings out the Hollywood aesthetic. The show is a mix of a murder mystery, a real-life video game, and a stage play where participants could partake in different quests (over 40 are available) that can lead to different outcomes. The Collective is a blast from the past, and interacting with the actors was a lot of fun as you can come up with interesting and amusing ways to achieve your mission.

There are so many moving parts for The Collective, that it can sometimes get overwhelming in this interactive and immersive show. There are many characters at play including Sylvia the starlet (Abiane Stroebel), Captain Seavey the smuggler (Shelby Ryan Lee), Maria the enforcer (Elena Scaringe-Peene), and many more. Before the start of the show, you’ll be sorted into a group based on how you filled out a questionnaire. The best way to enjoy the experience is to choose what you really want to do and focus on that. If that means jumping ship to work for another lieutenant, so be it. This is a criminal organization, after all.

I was sorted into the smuggler group with Captain Seavey as my boss, and whatever he asked, I did. There were other lieutenants looking to undermine each other, so it’s best to try to cut all the noise out and follow through with your goals. These tasks resulted in hilarious interactions with the actors including convincing them of joining our team via negotiations, distracting others in order to steal from them, finding the culprit of a murder that happened during the wake, and more. What’s great about these missions is that you actually feel like you’re part of the story and moving the story along.

If certain quests are accomplished, they activate pivotal or entertaining story elements. One group was able to activate a song and dance number between Sylvia and Shepard (Alexander Whitover), a lieutenant. Everyone gathered around the stage and sat down at their respective tables, watching Stroebel on the stage with her beautiful singing voice, and afterward, she and Whitover performed a fun swing routine.

In conclusion, The Collective is filled with interesting and engaging actors who help you move the story along. Will someone die on your watch? Will your actions help your lieutenant become the Don? It’s all a game of deception in this immersive and interactive show, and it’s the ultimate fantasy of reliving 1920s prohibition as an agent inside a crime syndicate.

Tickets for The Collective are available on the Hollywood Fringe website.