CBS finally let the cat out of the bag and the message was somewhat of a surprise: No more than four.
Alas, “Magnum P.I.” – waiting for weeks for a green light – was shown the red/stop light yesterday (May 11) that a fifth season, which would have launched filming this summer, is off the books.
Thus, the May 6 episode – with co-stars Jay Hernandez as Thomas Magnum and Perdita Weeks as Juliet Higgins, exchaging smitten “I like you” sentiments after kissing each other – was the season’s finale and the series’ ending.
Perdita Weeks and Jay Hernandez of “Magnum P.I.”
The cast has reason to be disappointed, perhaps the viewing fan base more so. The reboot of the original Tom Selleck-led procedural was far more popular, sustaining a 8-year run in the height of Hollywood discovering and setting up anchor to film episodic shows that depicted the sun, surf, and lifestyle – plus the rampant crime in paradise – that viewers all over the world watched. The foundation then was set by the Jack Lord-era of “Hawaii Five-0,” the first episodic crime-in-paradise CBS shot here, which lasted for 12 seasons.
The “Magnum” reboot originally was a Monday night show but shifted to a better night Friday before the shutdown. Ratings were pretty good – not great— dipping down to 7.4 million viewers and a 0.7 demographics rating in season 4, a skosh below numbers during Season 3. In recent years, ratings and demos no longer seemed as important or relevant during earlier decades, when the demos, based on advertising rates – the higher the demo ranking, the more it would cost for primetime ads — mattered more.
CBS still has one other island show, “NCIS: Hawai‘i,” which completed its first year of production, and the show, led by Vanessa Lachey as lead agent Jane Tennant, recently earned its season 2 go-ahead, with filming set for this summer for the fall season. Thus, the NCIS brand apparently still has life and luster.
Robbie Magasiva
Other shows aiming cameras here include Disney* “Doogie Kamealoha, M.D.” starring Perton Elizabeth Lee. and Jason Scott Lee, with season 2 filming set this summer; and HBO Max’s “Kenui Road,” a lifeguard lifestyle drama written and directed by John Wells and set on the North Shore with principals Robbie Magasiva, Andrew Creer and Tessa de Josselin, which has a pilot in the can with air date not yet set. …
Note: Since this review was posted, Manoa ValleyTheatre has extended “Cambodian Rock Band” through May 22. See MVT website for specifics.’
For me, the best thing about “Cambodian Rock Band” – playing through Sunday (May 15) — is that eye-filling, stage-expanding atmospheric set, designed by Michelle A.Bisbee. It depicts arcs of many hues of a ‘bow that dominates the stage, with ribbons of stripes enveloping the band to the right side of the stage, reaching out to the other side, and even spilling over onto the floor decor of the stage. Credit, too, to scenic artist/properties designer Willie Sabel for making the environment pop.
The scenics attract the selfie crowd and iPhoners who aim and shoot before the show, at intermission, and after the final curtain. When the set gets that kind of scrutiny, it evolves as a “character” in the storytelling.
A rainbow-highlighted scenic is at the heart of Manoa Valley Theatre’s “Cambodia Rock Band.”
It’s a beautifully bewildering statement that perhaps serves as a mindful reminder of the rays that depict the changing moods of the players. There’s a desk and a bit of furniture on the left side of the stage but there’s no denying: this trip to Cambodia will be remembered for this stellar rainbow.
The “Cambodia Rock Band” cast: front, Brenda Caban and Kelsey Bachrens; rear, Kevin Vann, Adrian Khactu, Jason Nomura, Miki Yamamoto and Michael “Mickey” DeLara.
Depending on what your expectations might be, “Cambodian Rock Band” is a tad challenging. It’s a little-known contemporary rock musical (it had an off-Broadway run, plus an indie film release) with historical and political implications of Cambodia in the 1970s, yielding questions that test your appreciation of non-traditional theater where the actors perform on instruments, too.
The play, by Lauren Yee, was bumped from MVT’s 2020 season due to the COVID pandemic, so it’s a bit tardy but provides a refreshing burst of invention. MVT is the first to stage the show in the islands.
The drama-with-music is a melange of different tiers, from a family drama to a staged rock concert, from a possibly tormenting drama about genocide to a dose of Dengue Fever (not the ailment but the rock band). This is foreign history put into words and lyrics that enhance a hip tempo. But a “Hamilton” it’s not.
Yee’s work is frequently wavering, with periodic disturbing turns, about a fictional band running afoul of the Khmer Rouge and potential demise, and tosses political bones with the reliance of prevailing surf-rock California vibes aired on Cambodian radio, with some tunes in the native tongue.
Yet the show is a rarity, with all but one of the seven-member cast singing and acting while performing on instruments and four actors have dual roles. Because several tunes are rock-oriented, be aware that the volume is occasionally loud.
The ensemble sashays in alternating time warps from the mid-70s to 2008 in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, and the pearls are in the retrospective past, with costumer Kimmerie H.H. Jones fine-tuning the garb to reflect the era.
Neary (Kelsey Bachrens, attractive and agile) is a motivated American lawyer, who is a lead singer who delivers the Cambodian repertoire with authority; she is the daughter of Chum (Adrian Khactu, impressive as dad and a lead voice ), a Cambodian native, accused of being a spy and sent to prison. Not surprisingly, they are at odds with generational viewpoints.
Pou (Micki Yamamoto, sweetly fragile ) also tackles vocal leads, with bandsmen Ted (Michael “Mickey” Delara, dependable and comforting), Leng (Kevin Yann, fashionably young-spirited) and Rom (Jason Nomura, versatile) is the reigning musical director).
Duch (Brandon Caban, effective and sardonic) is the narrator/antagonist with a powerful grin.
This isn’t a production where you’ll be humming a tune as you head home, but a whimsical “Old Pot Still Cooks Good Rice” and “Champa Battambang” might be titles you’ll cheer. And a Bob Dylan tune also is tucked into the soundtrack.
There are a few ironic twists as the denouement sheds light on relationships, so be aware.
Remaining shows: 7:30 p.m. tomorrow (Thursday, May 12) and Friday (May 13), 3:30 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday (May 14) and 3:30 p.m. Sunday (May 15).
Kevin McCollum, a former Honolulan and a veteran Broadway producer, is the lone Tony nominee with Hawaii ties competing as a producer of “Six – The Musical,” which is vying in eight categories this year.
McCollum also is a producer of “Mrs. Doubtfire,” the new musical nominated for one award – –Rob McClure, for Best Leading Actor in a Musical. McCollum’s previous Tony wins include such hits as “Rent,” “Avenue Q” and “In the Heights.”
Kevin McCollum
By nomination numbers, “A Strange Loop” leads the pack with 11 nods, followed by “MJ” and “Paradise Square” with 10, “Company” with nine, and “The Lehman Trilogy” and “Six” with eight.
The Tony Awards will be staged June 12, in two parts: the main three-hour broadcast, live via CBS from Radio City Music Hall, will be preceded by an awards special hour via Paramount+.
Since most Hawaii folks are not frequent Broadway visitors who might be acclimated to nominated shows or talent, we thought a rundown of the 2022 nominees might be a helpful guide.
Seems like a new tradition is in the making at Blue Note Hawaii: A Mother’s Day Brunch Show, with Frank DeLima as its toastmaster, cheerleader and centrifugal source.
DeLima, perhaps Hawaii’s favorite comedian, is known for cheerful pokes and punches to Hawaii’s rainbow of ethnicities. And wow, he was hot and happening this morning (May 8), delivering his best show ever, with plenty of howls and hoots indicative of a winnah!
He doesn’t leave anyone out, and his jabs to Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Filipino and Portuguese folks might potentially be racist in other hands. Not with this gentle giant of stand-ups; at 72, he knows his audience and struts cautiously devoid of foul language; his stance always is jovial as he celebrates, not slashes, cultural differences. He’s becoming a sit-down comic, too, as he navigates aches here and there like the rest of us elders. The bottom line: His humor does not condemn; he laughs with you, not at you; the gags are like the proverbial sugar that helps the medicine go down.
DeLima, in Korean costume.
DeLima was a bona fide sellout at the club within the Outrigger Waikiki resort, so calendar planners and bookers should contemplate signing him up for 2023. Now.
He’s seasoned at plucking folks from the audience. He’s also truly extemporaneous, and anything that comes to his mind reflects a quick wit that hasn’t lost that comic spark. He’s highly spontaneous, ad-libbing and jabbing away, and yep, he’s totally in control of his antics.
Clearly, this gig – he’s played the Blue Note previously, in evening gigs — demonstrated that he’s acclimated to the environment, evoking happy laughter. Clubgoers also are eager to get out and explore the new normal after two-and-a-half years of shutdown, and DeLima connected — the right act at the perfect time and occasion– with the mostly local crowd with precision and power. And moms at perhaps every other table.
DeLima as Imelda Marcos.
He didn’t mention it, so I will; when he trekked on stage, the space was curiously filled with covered-up instruments belonging to Tower of Power, the blues-pop giants, in a multi-day gig through Sunday night.
No matter, DeLima navigated a show, demonstrating his power of tolerance, in the minimal space he was allowed.
Some highlights:
His Imelda Marcos parody, with oversized wig, specs and green-black dress with toaster-shaped sleeves — had a two-pronged charm: he shared memories of her visit to The Noodle Shop, back in the early days of his Waikiki tenure, and relived that memory with her shoe-biz notoriety, making “What I Did for Love” anthem a gem. And surprise, he added “Downtown,” as an ode to Bong Bong, the Marcos son, but the jewel was the unexpected Christmas lights of his “Filipino Christmas” shtick, with the lights glowing whenever the lyrics mentioned Bong Bong. Nothing like a holiday boost in May.
DeLima in Chinese motif.
His Chinese character, Foo Ling Yu, was a gamemaster in a “Who Wants to be a Millionaire” parody, accented in Chinese with a dude named Lava from the crowd. It’s so familiar to so many, but everytime he stages this, it’s a new laugh-machine all over again.
Koreans were chided in a pair of satirical tunes, “Koreaumoku,” to the melody of “On the Street Where You Live” because Keeaumoku Street has been notoriously known for the Korean bars on that block, and “Korea,” a ballad about a girl rendered to “Maria,” the song from “West Side Story.” So much kim-cheer here.
The Japanese were targeted for their “boxey” four-syllabled names, like Yamashiro, Ariyoshi, and yes, sukiyaki.
An Asian-Okinawan sector included his body-padded sumotori prancing about, and dancing in the Okinawan style as well as the bon-odori “Tanko Bushi.”
He introduced the “Portuguese shrug,” with shoulders signaling an “I dunno” response. No words, just action, and the crowds chuckled.
His adoration and aloha to Bruno Mars – yes, he does talk about Bruno, despite the Disney-originated saying otherwise – and zipped out two Mars classics “Just the Way You Are” and “24 K Magic.”
DeLima in sumotori get-up.
Yes, he walks with a pair of canes these days, one for the left and the right hands, which he jokingly said he resembles a praying mantis, but the truth of the matter is he continues to have mobility issues with hip and legs. Thus, he sits through part of his performance, and stands when necessary, and indulges in character costume change before your eyes, slipping in and out of garments with the kokua of an aide.
He describes his two-member band, comprised of Bobby Nishida (bass) and David Kauahikaua (electric keyboard) as his Senior Citizen Band, since they’ve been his trusty sidekicks for more than three decades. That loyalty has to be applauded and admired.
Bobby Nishida and David Kauahikaua, DeLima’s newly-dubbed Senior Citizen Band.
DeLima, like other Waikiki acts, has been struggling to find venues to do shows, and his last “regular” space, prior to the pandemic, was the Pagoda Restaurant.
He used to joke that wherever he worked before, the performance space shut down, including venue as diverse as the Queen Kapiolani Hotel the Polynesian Palace and the Hula Hut.
Enter, the Blue Note., which programmed a splendid Mother’s Day brunch menu for the DeLima performance, and it appeared that most folks ordered the sampler dessert plate, the medley of three Spam musubi, the mammoth quiche with salad, and the kalua pork breakfast burrito, among others. Happily, the wait-staffers were able to take orders and deliver platters very swiftly and efficiently, far better than the usual nighttime food service, so the club’s kitchen protocols were in high performance mode. Thank you, very much!
Again, a DeLima brunch at Mother’s Day was a splendid option instead of a pricey Sunday buffet, so should be considered as an annual ritual. A Christmas brunch (vs.nighttime) also might convert the Blue Note into a day club, tapping DeLima as an option for December. Hey, why not? …
