Happy Halloween, gang; hope there will be more treats than tricks for you today. Celebrate safely and sensibly.
HAPPY HALLOWEEN TO Y’ALL
READY FOR HALLOWEEN 2025?
The assortment of Halloween pins — of ghouls, goblins, jack o’ lanterns and witches — has been distributed over the past month, so if you’ve got ’em, wear ’em for your trick-or-treating outings or at your Halloween parties this Friday.
Happy Halloween!
KALAPANA REDUX, AND DOWNSIZED
You might call it “Kalapana 50 Hana Hou.”
The spirit of the recent mammoth celebration of Kalapana’s 50th anniversary at the Tom Moffatt Waikiki Shell will be downsized considerably when fans and musicians alike reminisce about the milestone Oct. 4 event.
Gaylord Holomalia, a participant of the biggie outdoor event and a Kalapana bandsman in recent times, said the Blue Note endeavor — at 6:30 p.m. Nov. 17 and 18 at Blue Note Hawaii — is principally for those who missed the 50th anniversary show. Or perhaps it could be that some diehard followers might choose to continue to re-live the memory in the smaller Blue Note nightclub space at the Outrigger Waikiki resort.
Participating musicians include Kenji Sano, on bass and vocals; Todd Yukumoto on sax, flute and vocals; Alden Levi on guitar and vocals; Blayne Asing, on electric guitar and vocals; Garin Poliahu, on drums; Jorden Kealoha-Yamanaka, on vocals; and Ben Taaca, on guitar and vocals.
Tickets: (808) 777-4890…
Plan ahead for Christmas shows
There’s not a whole lot of holiday shows on the radar this year. At least, not yet.
So if you’re planning ahead to attend a particular show, better make reservations.
For instance, Robert Cazimero’s annual Christmas songfest at Chef Chai’s is nearly sold out, if not already filled. The gig is at 5:30 p.m. (for dinner) and a 6:30 p.m. performance, on Dec. 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20.
The big one – with premium ticketing prices — should be Kalani Pe‘a’s gathering at 7 p.m. Dec. 20 at the Hawaii Theatre.
Blue Note Hawaii has booked a string of shows with island talent, though some acts may do holiday fare mixed with their own repertoire. Among the bookings:
- “Merry Christmas to You,” led by Henry Kapono, at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 11.
- “AJ Raphael & Alyssa’s ‘Our Little Christmas Tour,” at 6:30 and 9 p.m.Dec. 4.
- Jake Shimabukuro, at 6 p.m. and 8:30 pm. Dec. 16, 17, and 18, and Dec. 19 at 6:30 and 9 p.m.
- Kimie Miner, at 6:30 and 9 p.m. Dec. 20.
- “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” with the Mike Lewis Band, at 6:30 and 9 p.m. Dec. 24 and 25.
Oh, Mary
Mary Gutzi enacts Emily Dickinson in a Readers Theatre Production of “The Belle of Amherst,” at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 3, 4 and 5 at The Actors’ Group’s Brad Powell Theatre at The Shops at Dole Cannery in Iwilei.
Vanita Rae Smith will direct the play based on a book by William Luce, a literary classic. “Amherst” is based on the life of poet Emily Dickison, circa 1830 to 1886, in her home at Amherst, Massachusetts, locale of the 1976 play.
The story embraces Dickinson’s recollections and encounters with significant folks in her life, including family, close friends, and acquaintances, and balances her isolation and seclusion with the rare joy she enjoyed with her friends..
It’s not Gutzi’s first time at TAG, but Readers Theatre regulars should check her out. Tickets ( $20) are available at (808) 722-6941… Further, she’ll join Shari Lynn in a one-nighter with two shows at TAG on Dec. 13…
And that’s Show Biz…
FULL STORY ON FACIAL RECOGNITION
OK, this will be – hopefully – the final continuation of a story on the half-face-only depiction of singer Kevin I.’s face on his new EP recording.
The image is on his new EP, “My Continuum,” now in release with five tracks demonstrating the power of romance in Kevin’s voice, now as well as then. You might recall, this release arrived some 40 years after Kevin shelved his musical career and current notion to jumpstart this journey of recovery.
Lance Jyo, Kevin’s Hawaii-based producer and composer (and new friend), says unceremoniously that the idea was his to go with the half-face cover art. “Let’s just show half of your face,” the boss told the vocalist.
“It wasn’t about hiding. It was symbolic,” said Jyo, a reflection of Kevin’s journey. “Half represents the part of him the world remembers, and the other half – unseen – represent the years of growth, reflection, and rediscovery that brought him back.”
Kevin felt and understood the situation and Jyo explained the overview thusly: “The other half of Kevin’s face isn’t missing because of acne – it’s missing because it tells a story. A story of a man who found his way back to the music he loves, and who now shares the journey — one song, and one half-face, at a time.”
Half-truths can add up to a logical conclusion…
Shorts of sorts
Glenn Medeiros will be at a book-signing event at 2 p.m. today (Oct. 25) at Barnes & Noble to celebrate the release of his autobiography, “From One Stage to Another.” Dr. Medeiros, of course, is the president Saint Louis School who was a teen idol balladeer with a national hit song, “Nothing’s Gonna Change My Love for You” back in the day…
Ho‘okena is in talks to do a Christmas concert on Dec. 13 on Kauai, and leader Horace Dudoit is working on a confirmation. “But I’ll be busy almost every weekend in December, touring with four-time Grammy winner Kalani Pe‘a,” he said. The Pe‘a gigs will visit Portland and Seattle, in the Pacific Northwest, and at Kahilu Theatre on the Big and Hawaii Theatre in Honolulu…
And that’s Show Biz…
ALAN WONG’S TAKING HOKU’S SITE
Alan Wong, one of the 10 pioneering founders of the Hawaiian Regional Cuisine movement, will be the new occupant of the current space of Hoku’s at the Kahala Resort, beginning in early 2026.
Hoku’s fine-dining format will shut down by year’s end, with Wong securing the space and ending his inactivity since the closure of both his signature Alan Wong’s in a second-floor space on King Street in McCully, and the companion Pineapple Room at Macy’s at Ala Moana Center, where Liliha Bakery now is thriving.
Wong, winner of the prestigious James Beard Award, has been a key player in supporting the Hawaiian Regional Cuisine, a chef’s club of sorts, from the time of his original island restaurant, the Canoe House at the Mauna Lani Bay Hotel & Bungalows in 1989.
The HRC gang included other restaurateurs including Roy Yamaguchi, Sam Choy, Philippe Padovani, Roger Dikon, Gary Strehl, Amy Ferguson Ota, Jean-Marie Josselin, George Mavrothalassitis, and Beverly Gannon. Two others who shared the goals of the movement included Mark Ellman and Peter Merriman.
Hawaii Regional Cuisine is a contemporary style of cooking tapping traditional Hawaiian ingredients with diverse flavors from Japanese, Chinese, Portuguese, Filipino, and American food traditions. Fusion specials mandate produces like taro, and slow-cooked meats, rooted in the island history.
Wong closed his restaurant during the pandemic five years ago, and his return to the cooking front will also attract members from a pool of notables, including, Mark Shishido (who has been Hoku’s beverage director), who will become general manager of the new Alan Wong’s. Shishido previously was with the Pineapple Room.
The Wong team will include Joe Almoguero as executive chef; the restaurant also is seeking a chef de cuisine, a sous chef, and a pastry chef.
Old favorites are expected to be on the menu, too. And surely, an extra attraction for diners should include Barack and Michelle Obama, who were never shy about listing Alan Wong’s as their favorite restaurant…
‘HAMILTON’ DIPS, BUT STILL IN $3 MILLION CLUB
“Hamilton” still has the Midas touch, the lone member of the $3 million club ln Broadway. It’s dropped a skosh ; it logged $4 million earlier.
The Top 10:
1—”Hamilton,” $3.764 million
2—”Wicked,” $2.266 million
3—”The Lion King,” $2.048 million
4—”Waiting For Godot,” $1.833 million
5—”ART,” $1.787 million
6—”Mamma Mia!,” $1.645 million
7—”Death Becomes Her,” $1.429 million
8—”Just in Time,” $1.364 million
9—”MJ the Musical,” $1.349 million
10—”Oh, Mary!,” $1.280 million
The complete list of grosses, courtesy the Broadway League:
And that’s Show Biz…