Category: Updates

Let it be said that once is not enough, when embracing and experiencing “Once on This Island,” now at the Manoa Valley Theatre. There’s so much to adore, appreciate and applaud.

The production is a treasure — and a pleasure — to watch.

I last saw this soulful, sensational show in 2018, at Broadway’s Circle in the Square in New York. Lea Salonga was one of the goddesses in the show; sand covered the in-the-round stage floor;  a realistic pool of water was part of the scene; a diapered goat (yes, live!) provided realism and whimsy.

The MVT production boasts the sandy floor and a tiny pool of water sits in one corner. Otherwise, this “Once on This Island” is spartan, yet boasting an incredible ensemble of singers and dancers, and that’s the beauty of this show. Its makers transform the spirit and shape the substance of the storytelling process.

“Once on This Island”  — with book and lyrics by Lynn Ahrens and music by Stephen Flaherty — is set on a rustic Caribbean island, and its troupers bring the words and music to life, playing rich and poor, gods and peasants, and – like in any traditional story – projects a beginning, a middle, and an end.

 Ahnya Chang, visionary director and choreographer, turns in her career-best work, molding and shaping this formidable non-stop engine, challenging her cast to fuel vocals and dances with typhoon-strength strokes, all the while demonstrating her power of synergy. She’s on a roll, truly, following this past summer’s I’m a Bright Kid Foundation’s “Newsies” at Paliku Theatre, where her choreography was stupendous.

As audience members stroll in to find their seats, the ensemble folks  are already at work, portraying resident islanders in a prelude,  milling around as survivors of a hurricane.

“Once on This Island” prosseses the traits of a morality play, embracing universal themes like hope and pain, struggles and successes, gladness and sadness, highs and lows, and conflicts and peace. 

To survive, togetherness matters; rights and wrongs abound. 

Four gods add a mythical mode; and like in “Romeo and Juliet,” star-crossed lovers from different sides of the tracks fall in love.

The four compelling gods propel the action, trigger bursts of emotions,  and guide the  emotional tempo of the citizenry: Asaka, the mother of the Earth, played by Lelea‘e “Buffy” Kahalepuna-Wong; Agwé,  the god of water, portrayed  by Jarren Amian; Erzulie, enacted by Jorin Young, the goddess of love; and Papa Ge, performed by Kimo Kaona, the demon of death.

Each actor is a thorough delight, approaching godliness with mythic and marvelous tonal qualities, putting their individual vocal imprint into their earthy folk songs that define their spirited strengths.

The love story  entails the protagonist Ti Moune (Alexis Burgarin, a  beautiful go-getter), an orphan raised by peasant parents (Mama Euralie, portrayed by La Masae Fa‘amausili, and  Tonton Julian, played by Keanu Roe), after the powerful gods save her life in the storm. 

Ti Moune is somewhat of a manipulator with a heroic streak, defying her parents and rescuing the wealthy Daniel Beauhomme (Darian Aquino, her attractive suitor) from death, whose hands and heart she seeks by the tale’s end.

Other secondary roles include Nicole Villejo as Daniel’s wealthy wife Andrea Deveraux  and Jared Duldulao as Armand Beauxhomme, Daniel’s rigid dad. And Sadie Hokama-Satele is the featured Little Girl.

The incredible ensemble should take individual bows, because they sing their hearts out and dance tirelessly, with their spectrum of motion and commotion. They form the solid and sustaining mid-section of the storytelling, so hurrahs to Pono Cummings, Landon Ballesteros, Marnita Nychelle Billups, Caitlin Bright, Drew Bright, Journey Glasbow, Alexandra Holloway and Presley A. Wheeler.

Kudos, too, to the tech crew: Chris Gouveia and Janine Myers, lighting; Jax Pitts, props; Kimmerie H.O. Jones, costumes; Willie Sabel, set; Sarah Velasco and Timothy Manamtam, sound; Lisa Ponce de Leon, hair and makeup; Eric Steinwandt-Gudoy, stage management; and Jenny Shiroma, music.

The show has been extended till Dec. 15, so if you can secure tickets, go. You’ll applaud and cheer the fine work.

And that’s Show Biz…

‘Once on This Island’

What: A musical by Lynn Ahrens (book and lyrics) and Stephen Flaherty (music), based on Rosa Guy’s novel, “My Love, My Love”

Where: Manoa Valley Theatre

When: At 7:30 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays,  and 3 p.m. Sundays (plus a 3 p.m. matinee on Saturday Nov. 23), through Dec. 15.

Tickets: $25 through $48, available at the box office, at (808) 988-6131, www.manoavalleytheatre.com and https://ci.ovationtix.com/35307/production/1195089 …

It’s a concept that actually beats the odds.

Robert Cazimero has been a prevailing vocal fave — a Waikiki attraction for decades, mostly with bro Roland Cazimero sharing the limelight in the finest showrooms like the Royal Hawaiian’s Monarch Room, or in a handful of casual lounges over the decades .

But Roland died on July 17,  2017 and Robert was suddenly a soloist who had to reinvent himself.

Some years ago, the transformation resulted. Restaurateur Chai Chaowasaree acknowledged Robert’s vocal talent and storytelling skills, from the time when he operated a restaurant at Aloha Tower Marketplace and featured Robert.

His serenades are sellouts; it’s casual ease, building on the informal piano bar format.  The riches of Robert’s spontaneous stories fit and amuse the diners  as they consume their appetizers, entrees or desserts.

No two performances are alike; the songs are varied, but the mood is like  being in a festive private living room .

Last night, I revisited Robert at Chai’s, with my wife Vi and our soldier-boy grand-nephew John Rhoades, who is visiting from his South Korea stint with the Army.

Memories flowed.

Seemed like yesterday, when Chai moved to Chef Chai’s on Kapiolani Boulevard. So the restaurateur recognized that the power voice of Robert was up for grabs. Chai invested in a grand piano, tucked in one corner of the new Chai’s, where the monthly  performances were dubbed Full Moon night. Curiously, some months, like November, had two moon outings (the last was this past Sunday). In December, there will be five full moon nights (go figure, the calendar doesn’t lie), which also will comprise Robert’s Christmas gift to his fans, since he won’t be mounting a lavish holiday show complete with his retinue of male hula dancers and singers.

But at Chai’s, the magic works. Less can be more; Robert and his two hula dancers, Bully and Sky, are part of the appeal. They dance, with Robert tickling the ivories.

I’ve seen him and his hula stylists more times that I can remember. I sat through Sunday’s show, and without taking my usual notes, I simply soaked in the sweet vocals and occasional hilarity typical in a Robert show.

Bully’s solo included “Holo Holo Kaa,” Sky’s included “Wahine Ilikea.”

Robert did a series of medleys that tapped Disneyesque  classics like “Zip-a-Dee Doo-Dah,” “Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo,” and “When You Wish Upon a Star,” tossed in a haole classic, “The Nearness of You,” tasking Sky to turn a non-Hawaiian tune into a hula.

This triggered a memory of  pupils interpreting Hawaiian carols with stiff, wood moves  reconstructed by Bully and Sky in a satiric rendering of “Mele Kalikimaka,” a parody of the impropriety of hula when graceful movements are not fitting in the storytelling,

It’s a one-of-a-kind happening.

Kaliko Kauahi, an actress originally from Lawai, Kauai, is co-starring in her  second NBC comedy, “St. Denis Medical,” which premiered on Nov. 12.

Kauahi portrays Val, a nurse administrator of the front desk overseeing incoming patients  in the  workplace comedy. So happens that the workplace is a hospital, where the injured or ill seek treatment and relief, where some people die.

Happily, Kauahi is portraying a Hawaiian character, just as she did in “Superstore.” But so far, Val hasn’t been assigned an island surname; at least none shows up In research.

The notion of securing a stage name instead of keeping  her real name as an actor never was an issue. “My family would be livid if I ever changed my name and what would I change it to, Kaliko Smith,” she told Hawaii News Now. “There’s only so much you can do with a name like Kaliko Kauahi.” 

If she was going to be a somebody, she was going to be known as a somebody with her given Hawaiian name and heritage. 

An actress wannabe, she had a slow start in her late 20s and after graduating from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. So, she had to play catchup.

But with two series to her credit, she must make her family proud and surely, she has the support of her fellow Kauaians

Though the show is set in a fictional Oregon community, it is filmed in L.A.…

Broadway grosses, for week ending Nov. 10:

“Sunset Blvd.,” the revival from London, is still on an upward move on the weekly list of Broadway shows. Its third place ranking is admirable, with “Wicked” still poised at No. 1 and likely will remain at the top since the first half of the film version opens at the end of November.

The Top 10:

1—“Wicked,” $2.541 million

2—“The Lion King,” $1.963 million

3—“Sunset Blvd,” $1.857 million

4—“Hamilton,” $1.772 million

5—“Hell’s Kitchen,” $1.436 million
6—“McNeal,” $1.423 million

7—“The Outsiders,” $1.408 million

8—“MJ the Musical,” $1.368 million

9—“The Great Gatsby,” $1.200 million

10—“Aladdin,” $1.179 million

The full list, courtesy the Broadway League:

And that’s Show Biz…

Vicki Bergeron Borges, widow of the esteemed jazz singer Jimmy Borges, died peacefully in her sleep on Nov. 10. She was 68.

Her passing was confirmed by Rick Ornellas, her companion and trusty Care-Angel, who has been her supportive partner and caregiver since July 2023, amid her battle with cancer.

During her final moments, Ornellas played Borges’ music, which soothed and comforted her, and she even appeared to be lip-synching to the songs till her final breath.

Vicki was born in Biloxi, Mississippi on Oct. 28, 1956.

The family relocated to San Francisco when she was a toddler, and she attended Pleasanton Elementary School, and graduated from Amador Valley High School, both in Pleasanton. California.

When she was 24 years old, she travelled with her girlfriend to Hawaii — and she never left.

At 26, she met her future soul mate, “Gorgeous Borges” (Jimmy) at Trappers, a “happening” place at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Waikiki. And she quickly became a regular patron at the night spot, for obvious reasons.

At 31, she and Jimmy got married in Las Vegas and were together for 34 years until his passing on May 30, 2016, two days shy of his 81^st birthday on June 1.

Vicki had a prominent career, as an executive assistant to the CEO of the Outrigger Hotels in Waikiki, an executive assistant to Mayor Jeremy Harris, and a scheduler for Gov. Neil Abercrombie.

Vicki and Ricky became a couple four and a half years ago. “Vicki is a strong wahine, sweet and pretty, and we had our first date when I invited Jack and Cha Thompson to Miro Kaimuki for dinner and Cha asked if she could bring a friend and that friend was Vicki Borges. For the record, I met Jimmy before Vicki when he was playing at Keone’s Lounge on Lewers Street in Waikiki.”

Vicki and Ricky were compatible for the most part, enjoying fine, sit-down dinners, and “she loved a chilled vodka martini dirty, her drink of choice. And her champagne of choice was the Veuve Clicquot yellow label, the same choice of Robert Cazimero,” said Ricky.

Cha Thompson suspected that Vicki’s cancer and the related pain affected her in recent weeks. “When she last called me, she wasn’t her usual positive self,” said Cha. “She always used to say, ‘I’m going to lick this’ (her cancer), but she seemed depressed. She was succumbing to the inevitable.” 

Navian Hawaii Hospice provided support, and Oahu Cemetery is the arranging  mortuary.

Vicki is survived by her attack parakeets,  Pupu, Lan Lan and Bun Bun, plus her aforementioned Care-Angel Ricky.

She is also survived by two brothers, Mark Bergeron (and wife Irma), of Martinez, Calif., and Farley Bergeron (and wife Kim), of Belton, Missouri. 

Per her choice, there will be no service, but her ashes will be scattered in the ocean fronting the Elks Club in Waikiki, reuniting her with hubby Jimmy,  whose remains also were scattered in the same location…

And that’s Show Biz…

Hawaii’s Bruno Mars and K-POP star Rosé are No. 1 on Spotify, the music industry’s streaming service. Their first collaboration, “APT,” has captured a global audience to rocket the song on the Global and US Spotify charts.

Mars, the megastar and his Hooligans group, has been a steady hitmaker for years, and Rosé, from the Korean girl group Blackpink, making her global debut on the streaming list ahead of her first album due out shortly.

The tune’s title is a Korean term, pronounced “apateu,” referring to an apartment drinking game.

The track has amassed an extraordinary 11,580,358 streams world-wide on a single Sunday; in the US alone, it garnered 1,579,405 streams, rocketing it to the top of the national chart

Mars, a previous Grammy winner, is not likely going to lasso a trophy in this year’s award fest, considering the stiff competition. He is paired with Lady Gaga in two categories, Song of the Year and Pop Duo/Group, for their bluesy duet, “Die With a Smile.”

The competish includes industry giants, like Beyonce and Taylor Swift.

The Grammys are set for Feb. 2 at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles…

Christmas jazz concert Dec. 15 at Mango Street Grill

Singer-composer-musician Gail Mack has assembled a roster of jazz musician pals and will stage Christmas jazz concert Dec. 15 at the Mango Street Grill, also known as the Central Oahu Event Center.

Upon arriving, diners will be served a prix fixe dinner while Steve Lucas, jazz guitarist, will serenade with the Mango Street Grill Jazz band serenading.

The main attraction will include an ensemble comprising Gail Mack (vocalist), Allen Won (saxophone), Abe Lagrimas (drums and ukulele), Michael Grande (piano), Mark Tanouye (bass), and Robert Shinoda (guitar), in a two-hour holiday jazz concert.

Surely, singer Mack will dust off her annual holiday hit, “It’s Christmas Once More in Hawaii Nei,” considering its tiimeliness on the date of the concert.

Doors open at 5 p.m., and food and drink service will begin after guests arrive. Pre-sale dinner reservations must be made by noon Dec. 12, with entrée orders ($59) made by calling (808) 627-5451. Walk-ins will not be allowed and selected entrees cannot be changed after the pre-sale window closes.

Mango Street Grill is located at 130 Mango St., in Wahiawa…

And that’s Show Biz…