Entrepreneur Jack Cione, who resides at the Arcadia, says he’ll do one more “Follies,” at the senior residence this fall.
The show will be entitled “Copacabana,” and will be staged Sept. 4, 5, 6 and 7, with a cast of Arcadia residents as well as core guest performers. “It’s the same cast we had the last year,” said Cione. “And the exactly the same playdates,” because this being a Leap Year with one extra day on the calendar.
Cione, pictured, who recently endured a bout with Covid, said confinement in his apartment enabled him to complete his script. Rehearsals will be held later this year. And Cione indicates that this year’s “Follies” will finally be his finale. (He’s said that before, but that’s Show Biz).
Admission is free, and Arcadians and their guests, will need to get tickets closer to showtime. The public cannot attend, unless invited by a resident.
Meantime, his friends are gathering this Saturday (March 16) at the Manoa home of Becki and MikeHan, to celebrate Cione’s 96th birthday. His actual birthdate is tomorrow ( March 15).
Happy birthday, my friend. Don’t know how you do all that you do…
Schirzinger vying for Olivier Award, heading to Broadway
Hawaii’s Nichole Schirzinger, pictured, who made her West End debut last year starring in Andrew Lloyd-Webber’s “Sunset Boulevard,” is nominated for a 2024 Olivier Award.
Schirzinger portrayed fading film star Norma Desmond, in the revival of “Sunset Boulevard,” which is nominated for 11 awards, including Best Actress in a Musical. The Oliviers will be announced April 14 at Royal Albert Hall.
As earlier announced, Schiringer and her leading co-stars, will head to Broadway in a revival run. Playdates and theater have not yet been announced. …
‘Wicked’ reclaims No. 1 Broadway slot
“Wicked” has soared to the No. 1 spot in the Broadway grosses of top attractions, toppling the perennial chart leader, “The Lion King,” to third.
The Top 10:
1—“Wicked,” $1,836 million.
2—”Hamilton,” $1,760 million.
3—“The Lion King,” $1,619 million.
4—”Merrily We Roll Along,” $1,562 million.
5—”Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street,” $1,352 million.
6—”Moulin Rouge! The Musical,” $1,304 million.
7—”MJ The Musical,” $1,248 million.
8—”Aladdin,” $1,207 million.
9—”Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,” $1,152 million.
10—”An Enemy of the People.” $1,104 million.
The full list, for the week endiing March 10, courtesy The Broadway League:
I created several dozen Easter pins — with Easter basket motifs — that wound up to be my favorite designs this year.
Again.
These pins are labor intensive, and each one is an original, because while the model of the basket design is the same, the contents — little bunnies, carrots, flowers, exterior add-ons — are all different. The colors vary, too. And so was the time required to finish a pin — from 20 to 30 minutes.
With all the pins already distributed — by mail, and in a few cases, delivered in person — I only have a few remaining, mostly to remind me how I did and what i utilized, to complete the pins.
So, sharing two photos of the range of the designs.
In “Dear Evan Hansen” — the emotional Tony Award-winning Broadway musical embracing teenage angst, loneliness, kindness, mental health, and suicidal issues — Manoa Valley Theatre hits all the right notes, with a superb cast led by Darian Keanu Aquino as the title character.
It is a potent and painful glimpse – loaded with tension — of the profound power and unexpected danger of social media, and the unintended fame earned by Evan, a high school student who writes himself an email in a doctor-ordered exercise that gets into the hands of an unhappy peer, Connor Murphy (Presley A. Wheeler, equally unstable, carefree, sometimes rude, and a free spirit), who finds a printout in the school’s computer room, and steals the letter enroute to committing suicide.
Connor’s mom, Cynthia Murphy (Susan Hawes, every bit a concerned mother), discovers the errant letter after his death, and it becomes the catalyst and centerpiece in Evan’s twisted rise to fame and a campus hero.
Darian Keanu Aquino is Evan, Presley A. Wheeler is Connor, in “Dear Evan Hansen.” –– Photo by Brandon Miyagi, courtesy MVT.
The show features a book by Steven Levenson (passionate and eloquent) and music and lyrics by Oscar winners (“La-la Land”) Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (absorbing and heart-tugging tunes). Directed by Rob Duval on a “set” by Elyse Takashige that is a bare but functions as an oversized billboard with periodical projections designed by R. Andrew Doan that propel – Facebook and TikTok fashion – the meandering plot details. The tech team thus is as vital as the acting ensemble, and together, there’s raw power and cadence that propel the highs and lows of this emotional roller-coaster.
Aquino as Evan has body language that speaks emotions without words. He is twitchy and nervous, with constant blinking eyes, with a fetish about his wet and clammy hands, always apologizing and possesses a never-ending habit of pulling down his tee shirt, shirt, or hoodie. Evan is a perpetual loner, walking a tightrope with a baggage of worries, not the least of which is his inability to find a genuine friend to sign his cast on his injured left arm. Enter, Connor, an indication that he’s an outsider, too,
With telling details, the plot is all about relationships, between Evan and his best bud, Jared Kleinman (Shane Nishimura, a charming wise-cracking sidekick, who’s Evan’s only friend), who serves as a warm shoulder to lean on. While Evan accepts Connor’s signature on his cast, he’s a hardly a pal, in life and in his imagined encounters after his passing, but there’s a moment of mutual, vigorous rock-dancing.
Evan, who is attracted to Connor’s sister Zoe Murphy (Ayzhia Tadeo, initially distant and quizzical but eventually tenderly sweet), overcomes the friction after Connor’s death.
Further, there’s a relationship between Evan and his working mom, Heidi Hansen (Vanessa Manuel-Mazzullo ) and with Connor’s parents, Larry Murphy (David Weaver), father of Connor, and Cynthia Murphy (Susan Haws). Not surprisingly, there are cracks and gaps in the relationship, when Evan is “outed” as a liar, the fibs heightened by public acclaim of his befriending Connor.
There’s one more relationship instance, between Evan and Alana Beck (Jenelle Wong, a willing cheerleader), who is co-president with Evan of the Connor Project, which she is fully committed to, to perpetuate the life of Connor.
Evan’s inability to spill the beans of his faux pretenses is understandable; he was a nobody before the tide turned, and the attention serves his psychological deficiencies while simultaneously feeds the frenzy that lifts his ego. That he could even deliver a speech at an assembly of peers plus the Murphy family reflects his lofty status and his declining fragility. And Aquino’s performance gets richer and more robust as Evan’s popularity soars, and the details get more specific and cloudier with fake specifics, like falling from a tree in the orchard of apple trees he had never seen. He’s found pieces from a massive puzzle, and he’s reaching out to complete a portrait he feels his rooters anticipate.
The musical score is splendid and the singers soar; the riches include Evan’s “ “You Will Be Found” in Act 1, the anthem where he laments his loneliness and uncertainty. Evan and Zoe’s duet on “Only Us” assures that his crush is becoming a real romance in Act 2, and Evan’s “Words Fail” is the ultimate “I’m sorry” effort, with the admission, “I never meant to make it such a mess.”
Jenny Shiroma conducts (and also plays keyboards with) the unseen orchestra of eight, supported by the resourceful sound designed by Sarah Velasco and Timothy Manamtam. Lighting designer Chris Gouveia illuminates the set with brilliance; and costume designer Amber Lehua Baker delivers with credible everyday garb. Likewise, Lisa Ponce de Leon’s hair and makeup design also reflects the simplicity the show requires.
For the faint of heart, bring Kleenex, because there will be emotional elements that will evoke tears. Truly. And for those queasy about language, there several F-bombs throughout the play…just so you know.
And with the sensitive health concerns of mental illness, and the element of suicide, MVY has a “You Will Be Found” postcard inserted in the “Dear Evan Hansen” playbill, should there be families or friends with need for support and consultation. Also, HMSA is the presenter of “Dear Evan Center,” cementing potential health needs for the community at large. A noble and necessary involvement…
And that’s Show Biz. …
——————————————- “Dear Evan Hansen”
A musical by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, with book by Steven Levonson
What: A lonely youth who writes a letter that falls into the hands of a suicidal peer, and the fame then furor, that ensues
Where: Manoa Valley Theatre
When: at 7:30 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays, and 3 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays, through April 7; extension dates, March 29 and 31 and April 6 and 7
This year’s Academy Awards likely have been already decided in recent weeks, amid the cluster of pre-Oscars competitions.
You know, Golden Globes, Critics Choice, SAG, BAFTA, etc.
ABC will televise the ceremonies, set to begin at 1 p.m. Sunday (March 10) Hawaii time, with Jimmy Kimmel hosting from the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. A pre-show ceremony starts at 1:30 p.m.
Our predictions in seven key categories:
Best Picture – “Oppenheimer.”
Best Director – Christopher Nolan, “Oppenheimer.”
Best Actor – Cillian Murphy, “Oppenheimer.”
Best Actress – Lily Gladstone, “Killers of the Flower Moon.”
Best Supporting Actor –Robert Downey Jr., “Oppenheimer.”
Best Supporting Actress – Da’Vine Joy Randolph, “The Holdovers.”
Best Song – “What Was I Made For,” from “Barbie,” Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell.
Some observations:
Disclosures: I didn’t see “The Holdovers” – it was on island screens briefly – so I’ll go along with Da’vine Joy Randolph’s previously amassed trophies. In the same film, Paul Giamatti (one of my respected faves over time) has won a Globe, seemingly won’t be able to surpass the rollercoaster that “Oppenheimer” has been this season.
Upsets could happen:Emma Stone (“Poor Things”) was a fave in the Golden Globes, so could bump Gladstone, the first Native Ameriican nominee this year. While Randolph was an earlier winner in the SAG, America Ferrera’s long monologue in “Barbie’ was quite the essence of a supporting actress performance.
Longest running films this year: “Flower Moon,” 3 hours 26 minutes. “Oppenheimer”? 3 hours. “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour,” 2 hours 48 minutes. Length could be a winning element.
Documentary snub: Why was Swift’s (pictured) concert film was ruled ineligible for Best Documentary consideration?: The Academy’s take: “Works that are essentially promotional or instructional are not eligible, nor are works that are essentially unfiltered records of performances.” Oh-kay. Still, the doc was tailor-made for Swift’s abundant talent.
More snub-bery: “Barbie” earned eight nominations but was absent in key actress and direction categories. Why? “Barbie” was nominated for Best Picture, Best Costume Design, Best Production Design, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Supporting Actress (Ferrera) and Best Supporting Actor (Ryan Goslyn), and two Best Song contenders, for a total eight slots. Everything considered, “Barbie” was a fun, stylish and popular box office hit. Pink and pretty, too, but it won’t win Best Picture, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress, or Best Supporting Actor, so let’s hope it cops a couple of techie awards. Its fame will have to settle for Best Song.
A galaxy of stars will be assembling: As is the tradition, last year’s Oscar winners will be on hand to present trophies to this year’s winners. So, anticipate seeing Brendan Fraser, Michelle Yeoh, Ke Huy Quan and Jamie Lee Curtis. Other celebrities expected: Michelle Pfeiffer, Al Pacino are set to appear, along with Zendaya, Matthew McConaughey, Jessica Lange, Nicolas Cage, Mahershala Ali, Sam Rockwell and Luptia Nyong’o. More names should be added by show time. …
Loretta Ables Sayre, the Tony-nominated island singer-actress who starred as Bloody Mary in Lincoln Center’s “South Pacific” several years ago, has been cast as a grandma in HBO Max’s “Pretty Little Liars” second season, dubbed “Summer School.”
“I play the mother of Lea Salonga (Elodie in season one’s “Original Sin”), and the grandmother of her daughter Mouse, played by Malia Pyles,” Ables Sayre said in an e-mail.
Her character’s name is Lola, who arrives in Millwood, to live with her granddaughter for the summer.
Ables Sayre, pictured, does look like a tutu now, with a stunning ’do. Remember when her Facebook postings last year showcased her flowing, graying, whitening hair, au naturel…minus coloring?
“Pretty Little Liars” will be chockfull of teens, many who are deceiving liars. Some will be returnees, others will be newbies. The show is a daunting and complicated blend of passion, tension, creepiness, heroes, and villains. Some will survive, some won’t.
The show is expected to stream on HBO Max this spring…
Broadway grosses, for week ending March 3
Not surprisingly, “The Lion King” still tops the ratings game on Broadway; but two new shows have joined the million dollar club, at No.9 and No. 10.
The Top 10:
1—“The Lion King,” $1,633 million.
2—”Wicked,” $1,603 million.
3—“Hamilton,” $1,548 million.
4—“Merrily We Roll Along,” $1,478 million.
5– Moulin Rouge! The Musical,” $1,214 million.
6—”Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street,” $1,199 million.
