Back in the day, in a high school English class, the teacher asked students to get involved in a game. Don’t know if the exercise had a formal name, but the concept was simple.
…a running brook
Finish this sentence: Have you ever seen …
The trick was to combine a noun with a verb, to give the query a quirky result.
Like, have you ever seen a horse fly?
So I’ll resurrect the game, with hope that you might join in to share your brainstorming skills.
…an ocean wave.
I’ll do a few more examples to get the momentum going.
In year two of the pandemic, should kids trick-or-treat?
Last year, Halloween was a washout because of coronavirus.
Trick-or-treating: A go or no?
Though it’s safer now than a year ago, should island keiki (high schoolers included) roam the streets with the Halloween masks or pandemic masks to gather candy and other treats even if they likely won’t eat anyway?
This is not your older sibling’s Halloween, when kids not only had a bag for treats, but carried a jack-o-lantern (with candle, years ago; with batteries, in more recent times). Do you remember jack-o-lanterns?
There still remains that magic number 10 for outdoor gatherings and there are clusters of dozens in costumes parading down the streets, often in clusters larger than 10, to collect the sweets.
So what’s your plan? Keep the kids at home? Don’t hand out treats?
Manoa Valley Theatre is the first local stage group to kick off a delayed and occasionally truncated drama season. Its Hawaii premiere of “Be More Chill” opened Thursday night (Oct.14) and runs through Oct. 31, with new protocols.
Consider:
For the first time, season subscribers, along with single-ticket buyers, had to designate specific seat choices. Assigned seating will be in place throughout the 2021-22 season.
Masks must be worn to enter the theater and watch the play, as has been the practice during the past season.
MVT’s opening show
Proof of vaccination is required, so bring your vaxx card for certification.
Social distancing protocols mean that MVT can only sell and fill 60 of its 120 seats, meaning half the house.
The post-show opening night party is canceled as long as the pandemic lingers.
With the pushback in dates, there won’t be a week or two of extension performances, because the finale of the current show would affect the preparation and opening of the next production, which is “The Joy Luck Club,” beginning Nov. 26.
Audience members are asked to exit the hall after the performance, which means that apres-show gestures of aloha – lei or bouquets, gifts and hugs – are discouraged. Gifts for cast members on opening night were collected and distributed backstage.
Playbills are part of the sacrifices of a pandemic – there is only a virtual playbill, available at www.manoavalley.com . It’s a misfortune for actors and techies involved in the ritual of theater – a memory keepsake unavailable for now. …
‘Oliver’ seats scarce
DHT’s opening show
Diamond Head Theatre has virtually been silent about its “Oliver!” season opener, which begins Oct. 22. Because of the half-house seating protocols, most of the performances have been “sold out,” since season subscribers had to be reassigned to other nights. (When sales started, the pandemic protocols suggested that all seats could be sold; that changed).
At this time, only one performance, at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 3, offers pairs of seats available for purchase. Details: www.diamondheadtheatre.com .
The obvious requirements are in place: mask-wearing, social distancing, proof of vaccination before entry.
Further, DHT has eliminated its opening night party, along with the complimentary playbill (a virtual one exists on the website) and also discourages friends and other patrons gathering after a performance for the customary shared aloha with cast members. …
A virtual ghost story
KK’s opening show
Kumu Kahua’s world premiere of “The Kasha of Kaimuki,” at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 28, is perhaps Hawaii’s most unusual debut this fall. The thriller, about a notable and terrifying haunted house in Honolulu, will be performed virtually. The play is by Hannah Ii Epstein.
A virtual performance is not unusual these days, but the cast will assemble from four different time zones, to perform as one ensemble. Talk about a looming twilight zone.
The cast and crew will involve talent not only in Honolulu, but also in California, Illinois (Chicago), and Pennsylvania.
“One of the best things to come out of having to work digitally, is working with people from all over the place,” said Kumu’s Harry Wong III. “Especially when we get to work with those with local ties to Hawaii, people who are going to school outside of Hawaii, or some who had to leave Hawaii to seek work elsewhere.” For instance, islander Alisa Boland, is attending school in Chicago, and the virtual performance enables her to participate from afar. So it’s a new wrinkle and twinkle to the digital experience.
“The digital format will also lend itself well to the scary aspects in this production,” said Wong. Which means if things go awry, there will be unintended obake drama. …
Kevin Pease, who’s left his pals from the I’m a Bright Kid Foundation here, has a new gig ahead in the Chicago area.
He is the new artistic director of Chicago’s Beverly Arts Center, which he describes as “a cornerstone of the Beverly/Morgan Park neighborhood since 1967.”
Kevin Pease
Pease added, “Their 40,000 square-foot space houses a 400-set proscenium theater, art gallery, exhibition spaces, music and dance studios, art classooms and event rental spaces including a courtyard and light-filled atrium,” he said. “I’m excited and humbled to begin this journey with their amazing leadership team and the array of artists and educators dedicated to bringing high quality arts experiences to not only the Far South Side but to the Greater Chicago Metro Area. I can’t wait to get to work with BAC in sparking joy through the arts.” …
Ruivivar scores ‘NCIS’ role here
Anthony Ruiviar
Anthony Ruivivar, currently seen on the Disney+ streaming comedy, “Turner and Hooch,” was in Honolulu earlier this month, for a bit of filming of “NCIS: Hawai‘i.”
He couldn’t reveal any specifics about the role, citing non-disclosure protocols, but was impressed with the manao shared by Vanessa Lachey, starring as Jane Tennent, the show’s lead special agent. …
Mary Gutzi
Gutzi home for R&R
Mary Gutzi, the singer-actor-entertainer, is in the islands again, after living and working in New York City.
“So happy to be home,” she said in an email. “New York was very challenging in this pandemic and the aloha here is a welcome change.”
For now, Gutzi hopes to recruit some students for private coaching in the realm of acting. Since local theater is set to go again, she’s eager to prep prospects with auditions, train actors needing help with a monologue, and even do scene work. “You just name it,” she said.
Her workshops in The Big Apple were canceled due to the coronavirus, so she decided to come back home and offer her services.
Gutzi plans to be home through Nov. 3. …
HPR raises $622,785 in campaign
Hawaii Public Radio raised $622,785 in its fall membership campaign, with 35 per cent of donors representing first-time supporters.
The station relies on the campaign for 94 per cent of its revenues, with the remaining 6 per cent from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
“Once again, our community has stepped forward to demonstrate their commitment to the work that we do,” said José A. Fajardo, HPR’s president and general manager.
