Let the Seasons Begin!

by Julie Mitchell

Fall traditionally marks the beginning of theater seasons, when performance schedules are announced and patrons are offered discounts for subscribing to an entire lineup or personalized “mini-seasons.” Starting this month, 13 local arts organizations launch an array of music, dance, and drama.

The Kahilu Theatre (KT) is the island’s largest presenter, boasting 23 offerings. The University of Hawai‘i at Hilo Performing Arts Center (UHHPAC) is a close second, since both the university theater and Hawai‘i Concert Society (HCS) stage their programs there. Both Kahilu and UHHPAC enjoy stages large enough to accommodate major dance companies, giving them a virtual monopoly on presenting the works of world class choreographers. In February and March the Atamira Dance Collective, a contemporary Maori dance troupe from New Zealand, and the vibrant Giordano Jazz Dance Chicago perform at both venues.

Go north

Too many to list here, Kahilu’s 2007-08 offerings are posted online. Concerts range from the Irish group Altan to the jazz stylings of the Josh Redman Trio to the enigmatic sound of Xoomei, or throat singing, performed by Huun Huur Tu. Other highlights include the Hawaiian dance drama Kahikili by kumu hula Hokulani Holt; the contemporary dance company Doug Varone & Dancers, and the high camp of the infamous Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo (the Trocks).

“The Trocks parody the clichés from classical and romantic ballet en travesti. You’ll be overcome by men in tutus with bright red lipstick and gargantuan shoes romping through rare romantic relics en pointe. Just tutu much!” jokes KT managing director Janet Coburn.

Center stage

UH-Hilo’s Performing Arts Center was renovated this summer and now boasts a new roof, technical lighting position, carpet and seats.

UHHPAC’s season opens with the outrageous theatrics of Tomas Kubinek (also at KT), christened a “certified lunatic and master of the impossible.” It continues with I Land, a solo performance piece by Hawai‘i born hula artist and actor Keo Woolford. In November, Jackie Pualani Johnson directs Paul Rudnick’s 1991 play I Hate Hamlet, followed in March by the musical Grease. Maestro Ken Staton’s UHH Orchestra performs the works of Leroy Anderson in February and, in May, accompanies singers for “Great Moments in Opera!”

Other concerts include South American singer, guitarist, and mouth and body percussionist Adi Assad; South African trumpeter Hugh Masekela; and African American a cappella ensemble Sweet Honey in the Rock (all also at KT).

Violins and ukes

“Classical music is the basis of our season,” says Hawai‘i Concert Society president Thomas Geballe. HCS’s concert series opens with the quarter-century-old Shanghai String Quartet (also at KT), playing works by Beethoven and Schubert plus Chinese folk music. Other performers include Italian string ensemble Interpreti Veneziani and ethereal female a cappella quartet Anonymous 4 (both also at KT), the Cavatina Duo (flute and guitar); recent Van Cliburn Piano Competition silver medalist Joyce Yang; and Keola and Moana Beamer with the Spring Wind Quintet in the island premiere of Beamer’s full-length Malulani, ‘Neath the Shadows of Stars.

The Kamuela Philharmonic Orchestra (KPO), conducted by Madeline Schatz, performs three free concerts a season at the Kahilu Theatre. Since its 2004 debut, the orchestra has grown from 21 strings to a full 44-piece symphonic orchestra, the only one on the island. Its popularity has grown as well, prompting a move from Hawaii Pacific Academy’s Gates Performing Arts center to the larger Kahilu Theatre.

In October brings Vivaldi’s “Guitar Concerto in D Major” with soloist Dick Solmssen, Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 4, and Beethoven’s “Coriolan Overture.” In January, they perform Dvorak’s Symphony No. 9 and in March, Schubert’s Symphony No. 8 and Bruch’s “Violin Concerto in G Minor” with Schatz as soloist.

The Kona Music Society (KMS), headed by music director Mark Barville, includes the approximately 65-member Kona Music Society Chorus plus the Kona Symphony Orchestra. Only their first performance of the season, Messiah Plus, features the complete orchestra.

“Messiah Plus” showcases the music of Bach’s “Magnificat” and choral selections from Handel’s “Messiah,” followed by WinterSong 2007 in December, Folk Music Medley in May, and Pretty Much Pop! on Father’s Day.

Founded in 1984, the Ka‘u Concert Society (KCS) hosts high quality performances in a variety of venues, including the Na‘alehu Methodist church and Na‘alehu School.

“Because of membership in the Hawai‘i Alliance of Music Societies, KCS has frequently been able to present artists of international stature such as pianist Gilles Vonsattel and violinist Frank Huang,” notes KCS president Marcia Masters. “As is our custom, we are starting our season off with one of our more ‘classical’ performers, pianist Lisa Downing from Denver, Colorado. She’s a true renaissance woman who performs many of her own compositions.”

KCS also hosts Buddy and Sammi Fo in October and Cyril Pahinui in May, with two more concerts planned.

“We hope to have the great jazz sound of Brian McCree and friends, plus another classical artist to round out the season,” relates Masters.

Grand dames

Two historic theaters—the Aloha in Kainaliu and the Palace in Hilo—don’t really offer seasons, but host a wide variety of performances.

Co-proprietor Krista Gonsales is most excited about the Aloha’s 75th Anniversary Celebration in November.

“We are very proud to be the owners and caretakers of this fabulous community gathering place and historic building,” she notes.

Also appearing in 2007-08 are the Villasenor family’s Fascinating Art of Magic, Hawaiian Grammy and Hoku award-winning singer-songwriter John Cruz, Jim Jarrett in a reprise of Leonard Nimoy’s Vincent, and the 22nd Annual Magic Spectacular.

Hilo’s Palace presents The Wizard of Oz in October, followed in November by a unique trio of events: Three Extraordinary Women by Hawaiian playwright Victoria Nalani Kneubuhl; Bare & Core Expressions’ Third Annual Drum & Percussion Festival; and Ho‘omake‘aka, an evening of comedy with Andy Bumatai, Frank DeLima, Kaleo Pilanca, and students of Center Stage Dance Studio’s standup comedy workshop.

Community drama

The Aloha Performing Arts Company (APAC), Waimea Community Theatre (WCT), and Kilauea Drama & Entertainment Network (KDEN), feature amateur performers recruited in open auditions. APAC stages shows at the Aloha Theatre, WCT at the Parker School Theater, and KDEN at the Kilauea Military Camp (KMC) Theater and other East Hawai‘i venues.

In October APAC opens Little Shop of Horrors, the musical comedy by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman that tells the outlandish story of a nerdy florist who raises a plant, possibly from outer space, that feeds on human blood.

In 2008, APAC produces the 1999 Broadway version of Irving Berlin’s Annie Get Your Gun; Tennessee Williams’ Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, a powerful drama exploring the dynamics of a dysfunctional Southern family and the complex issues of class, isolation, and gender; and Seussical, Jr., a musical based on the works of beloved children’s author Theodore Geisel (Dr. Seuss).

The Waimea Community Theatre schedule includes Neil Simon’s gender-bending comedy Victor Victoria, Frederick Knott’s dramatic thriller Wait Until Dark, Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, and Rodgers and Hammerstein’s The King and I.

The newest community theater group is Kilauea Drama & Entertainment Network, founded in 2002. This season, KDEN presents its usual February mystery/comedy (play yet to be determined) and July musical, HMS Pinafore.

“Our board voted to do all the Gilbert and Sullivan works in upcoming years—but not every year—until we’ve gone through their entire repertoire,” says KDEN executive producer Suzi Bond.

KDEN also plans to present the drama The Last Five Years, remount The Foreigner, sponsor winter and spring concerts with the Volcano Festival Chorus, and continue their Friday living history program A Walk into the Past at Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park (HVNP).

Beyond art

Arts organizations like the East Hawai‘i Cultural Center (EHCC) and Volcano Art Center (VAC) present music and dance concerts in addition to myriad other offerings, from exhibits to workshops.

EHCC continues its (mostly) monthly Hawaiian music series with upcoming performances by Ozzie Kotani, Ikaika Marzo, and Ben Kaili. EHCC also hosts Wayne Stier’s own brand of Japanese Noh theatre, Armageddon Thirsty; Angel Prince’s full-length dance show, Disposable Nation; and a concert with the Orchid Isle Youth Orchestra String Quartet. It’s launching the new East Hawai‘i Dance Festival in February. The festival’s theme is “celebrating contemporary dance and a sense of place” and it features Peter Espiritu and Keanuenue Kapahua, choreographers who meld traditional hula with modern dance styles.

“Most performances take place in our black box performance space,” explains EHCC’s new executive director, Marcia Timboy. “The space will be renamed to honor board member and theater advisor Paul Mark Clark, who recently passed away.” Four plays initiated by Clark are in the works for 2008.

Volcano Art Center (VAC) produces concerts at the KMC Theater in HVNP with Laurie Lewis and Tom Rozum (also at Aloha) and shakuhachi flutist Riley Lee and slack key guitarist Jeff Peterson, as well as its 16th Annual Spring Dance Concert. A special October Japanese music concert at VAC’s Niaulani Campus features master koto player Masateru Ando and his daughter Tamaki plus shakuhachi player Yohmei Blasdel (also at KT).

VAC also presents its signature free, six-performance Na Mea Hawai‘i Hula Kahiko Series, held outdoors in HVNP.

“At the summit of Kilauea, hula dancers and chanters invoke the power of Pele as they face her sacred home. Nowhere else on earth can this happen,” says series organizer Marsha Hee.

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