On one recent Monday evening, the Legionnaire Saloon in downtown Oakland was filled wall to wall with people. It’s only 7 p.m. but the bar is so busy that the bartenders have to take breaks from the endless line to collect glasses because they keep running out.

However, the crowd isn’t dressed in your average after-work drinks attire. A construction crew in neon vests and hardhats order cocktails at the bar, multiple Dolly Partons mill around a table, while a single Rosie the River works through some last minute choreography.

They are all here to compete in the second season of KaraOakland, the East Bay’s only competitive karaoke league. Teams of five to seven singers perform and compete across multiple rounds, with winners selected based on song choice, costumes, props and enthusiasm. There’s a different theme each week — recent themes included Jock Jams, High School Dances and Goths and Ghouls — with a season-long championship hanging in the balance. Think of it like a beer league softball, but for recovering musical theater kids.

I happened to attend during a labor-themed evening, with a percentage of the night’s proceeds going to Fair Labor Oakland, which prompted such song choices as “Work” by Rihanna, “9 to 5” by Dolly Parton and “Money, Money, Money” by ABBA. In an effort to promote fairness and build vivid engagement, winners are chosen via ranked choice voting (also used for Oakland local........

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