Category: Stage

Darren Criss, the  first Asian American to win a Tony Award for a Leading Actor in a Musical for “Maybe Happy Ending,” will take a leave of absence from the musical after Aug. 31, but will resume his role in the fall.

It was previously announced that Andrew Barth Feldman would replace Criss,  who became the first Asian American axctor to win the Tony. Criss is part Filipino and has Honolulu ties. Feldman is white – cause of the concern from some critics sinnce there’s a scarcity of Asian roles for actors.

But because Criss also is a co-producer of the Korean musical, it was simple to resolve the controversy, by proclaiming his nine-weak leave will be temporary, and that he will return to the show on Nov. 5.

The Broadway cast features Helen J Shen and Criss starring as, respectively, Claire and Oliver, South Korea-based Helperbots deemed obsolete. The pair form an unlikely bond, setting off a surprising and romantic adventure,  earning its Best Musical laurels earlier this year.

Several Hawaii actors remember that Criss attended a local school, and thus qualifies as an island-winner of two Tonys this year, one for his acting, and the other for his producing…

‘Hamilton’ reclaims No. 1 spot on weekly grosses

“Hamilton,” celebrating its 10^th anniversary, surged back to No. 1, earning $2.197 million.

Which means “Wicked,” which has regularly ruled the charts, dipped to No. 2.

“The Lion King,” a dependable player week after week, found itself in the No 3 slot.

And “Gypsy,” in its closing week, logged its best numbers, claiming the No. 4 position, its best week of a challenging season.

The Top 10:

1—”Hamilton,” $2.197 million

2—”Wicked,” $2.018 million

3—”The Lion King,” $1.948 million

4—”Gypsy,” $1.607 million

5—”Mamma Mia!,” $1.606 million

6—”Maybe Happy Ending,” $1.373 million

7—”Just In Time,” $1.293 million

8—”Aladdin,”  $1.273 million

9—”Death Becomes Her,” $1.238 million

10—”MJ the Musical,” $1.228 million

The complete list, courtesy the Broadway League:

And that’s Show Biz…

“Gypsy” opens with a sumptuous overture of tunes, with melodic highlights from the score by Jule Styne (music) and Stephen Sondhein (lyrics), orchestrated by the incomparable Clarke Bright. He conducts a large (by Hawaii standards) 14-piece orchestra, which results in a rich, robust sound experience.

The show ends with a stunning, emotional “Rose’s Turn,” the climactic finale rendered by the leading lady, Mama Rose, enacted by Jacquelyn Holland- Wright. Rose is a stage mom who seeks the best for her two daughters while silently seeking elusive success herself. Jac, as the visiting singer-actress is  known, turns in a career-best performance. She belts and trots to all sectors of the stage, claiming the space and conquering the pace in a finale that’s wow!

Yes, there’s an abundant number of creative talents in the I’m A Bright Kid Foundation’s revival of “Gypsy,” the evergreen musical about the dysfunctional family, playing two more weekends through Aug.  24 at Paliku Theatre, Windward Community College.

The show, with book by Arthur Laurents, offers extravagant elements not commonly featured in stage musicals in Hawaii these days.

Let’s start with the leading lady, a grown-up Bright Kid who portrayed Mama Rose in 1987 while at Castle High School when she was directed by Ron Bright. She’s on leave from her lead role in “Menopause” a hit on the Las Vegas scene, and here,  she is a firecracker with a lit fuse, delivering an explosive, indelible performance as the indefatigable stage mother. If there’s an acting awards trophy here, she’d snap it up, pronto.

Ahnya Chang, doubling as director and choreographer, demonstrates she has the chops and depth to ignite this legacy show which seems dated because of the story, set in the early 20^th century when vaudeville and burlesque were mainstream entertainment.

Maestro Bright, conductor of all IABK shows, waltzes through 13 numbers in Act 1 and seven in Act 2 and radiates energy and substance. That opening overture is dy-no-mite.

DeAnne Kennedy’s eye-filling, soul-embracing set design suits the era of the 1920s – four red ceiling-to-floor curtains  for starters –with sundry other sites ranging from dressing rooms to a Chinese restaurant, from train stations to vaudeville stages. I’m uncertain if it’s her creation,too, but a mini marquee over the expanse of the stage is effective, announcing all the sites in the storytelling.

This craft of perpetuating tales and emotions and memories through songs and dance, has been the lasting mantra of Mr. B., who utilized the stage as a mecca for his simple mantra: believe in yourself.

And the parade of characters in “Gypsy,” from Mama Rose down to her daughters June and Louise who are forced to  try out for show after show even with minimal talent, reflect the cycle of life in the theater. The connective links to life are the songs of hope and love, of happiness and pain.

The show was perceived to be a vehicle for Ethel Merman, who played Mama Rose on Broadway, and her spirit and sheen were surely the inspiration in Jac Holland-Wright, who has the pipes to deliver her songs with purity and punch. Her “Rose’s Turn” finale is a hallmark of belting.

There must be 60 to 70 cast members – kids and adults alike, some newbies, some veterans – and they are the army that give the show its grit, its gist, its gravitas.

Tani Siu, who portrays the grown-up Louise, is initially a timid stripper, but learns how to tease to maintain her dignity. Siu brings beauty and coyness to her Louise.

The “You Gotta Get a Gimmick” is the height of comedics, in voice and in gyration, with Tessie Tura (portrayed by Ligaya Stice), Mazeppa (played by Faith Kawai) and Electra (enacted by Camille Michel) demonstrating their idiosyncratic gifts:  ballet with wings, trumpet-tooting, and lighted costumes, respectrively.

There are a couple of other standouts in the show. Swaine Kaui (as Herbie) is patient and dedicated, as the would-be hubby of Mama Rose.

(Local actor photos courtesy of Tracy Larrua of Poi Planet)

Drew Bright (as Tulsa) is emerging as a virile song-and-dance trouper, on his “All I Need Is The Girl” solo.

Scores of youngsters appear as dancing newsboys, farm boys, and toreadorables. Their unified spirit in song and dance is superb.

And Omnia Nova, as costume designer, had to clothe ‘em all (though some garb were rented); Kevin Murata and Mia Yoshimoto’s hair and make-up design was a task fulfilled, considering the scope of the cast and variety of styles. And Annie Yoshida’s props design included news boys’ canvas bags, a flashback to last season’s IABK “Newsies” show.

Further, lighting design by Janine Myers and sound design by Steven Nelson worked in unison, tackling some tricky elements, like flashing strobe lights and some vocal gymnastics.

“Gypsy” is one of the fabled shows of Broadway’s golden era of legacy productions with a rich score with singable tunes like “Let Me Entertain You,” “Everything’s Coming Up Roses,” “Some People” and “If Momma Was Married.”

And that’s Show Biz…

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“Gypsy”

A Broadway musical with book by Arthur Laurents, music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim; produced by the I’m a Bright Kid Foundation

What: A fable about an ambitious, determined stage mother, Rose, and her two daughters, June and Louise, who seek fame and fortune in the world of burlesque and vaudeville, in the early 20^th Century

Where: Paliku Theatre, Windward Community College

When: At 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 4 p.m. Sundays, Aug.8 through Aug. 24

Tickets: $34 to $44 for adults, $29 for students 12-18,  military and seniors and $24 for children, plus fees; visit https://cur8.com/projects/24380 or www.iabk.org

Everything’s coming up roses for actress Jacquelyn Holland-Wright.

Well, Mama Rose, anyway.

Holland-Wright — affectionately called Jac — is tackling the single-mother lead character in “Gypsy,” which opens a three-weekend run Aug. 8 at Paliku Theatre, Windward Community Theatre

Jac can relate to Mama Rose, a single mom who seeks a better life for herself, to provide for her two daughters, June and Louise, in their quest to entertain.

In Jac’s real-life scenario, she has a son, Parker, a drummer in high school, who may have a future  in entertainment, like his mom. Or not.

“Gypsy” is a homecoming for Jac, who first performed Mama Rose  at Castle High School in 1987. Appropriately, she is a bona fide Bright Kid, who gained her acting chops here and went abroad to shape her career as a professional actress, the essence of the kind of success story of The I’m A Bright Kid Foundation, the theater group presenting “Gypsy.” IABK is dedicated to the performing arts but specifically committed to preserve and perpetuate the legacy of long-time director-teacher Ronald E. Bright, or Mr. B, to his students.

 Dr. Ligaya Stice, sister of Jade Stice and the executive director of the IABK Foundation, said,”When our team decided on producing ‘Gypsy‘ this year, we all had one actor in mind to play the part of Rose, and that person was Jac.”

“The role is demanding, in every way,” said Jac about Rose, whose ambitions and dreams parallel her personal goals as an entertainer who sings. “It’s all about survival.”

Jac, born and raised in Kailua and a Castle graduate, has sustained a 30-year career on the Las Vegas and Broadway stages.

Jac earlier played Mama Rose, so she has history with the story. “It’s a beautiful show,” she said. “I did the role 38 years ago with Jade Stice (as Louise, who evolves as Gypsy Rose Lee)  and Mr. Bright directed.” The musical was one of many Mr. B. directed on the Windward Side, mentoring hundreds of youthful actors while at Castle High School, whose auditorium now bears his name, Ronald E. Bright Theatre. Bright also directed adult casts in musicals at Paliku Theatre before his death on Nov. 26, 2015.

As she assumes the role of Rose, she feels entrusted with the part, and she seeks to bring out her character’s colors and layers. “My goal is storytelling, and I want to lift everybody with the process (of acting),” she said.

Rose can be a tricky character, since she is selfish because of her situation, said Jac. “It’s easy to be angry with Rose.  You can love her, but she’s kind of a late bloomer – born too soon, or started too late – and she forces her kids into show biz, fighting for what she wanted herself, and couldn’t get.” All this amid the heyday of vaudeville and burlesque .

Her big number is “Rose’s Turn,” when Rose takes a look in the mirror and finds self-realization.”It’s heartbreaking if you don’t tell the story the right way. It’s a tricky number,” said Jac.

The musical, with book by Arthur Laurents. music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, boasts many hit songs, including “Everything’s Coming Up Roses,” “Some People,” “Small World,” “You’ve Gotta Have a Gimmick,” and “Let Me Entertain You.” A Broadway revival is running through Aug. 17 at the Majestic Theatre, starring Audra McDonald.

Jac values what she learned from Mr. B.: “Believe in yourself.” That’s the path to your success, she said. And she adores Hawaii’s mixed plate casting, where Asians and Hawaiians and haole actors and other ethnicities can come together and do a show.

“That decade of shows with Mr. Bright  was valuable experience for doing eight shows over six nights in Las Vegas,” she said of her agenda. Jac currently stars as Soap Star in “Menopause The Musical,” the longest-running musical on the Vegas strip.

“Menopause,” her hit Vegas musical, was a personal revelation 10 years ago. “When I started in the show, I didn’t realize that menopause hits between 45 and 55,” she said about that life-changing moment. “I was divorced, had a 5-year-old son, and realized I was living the show. I wondered why the rest of the women were not so energetic, since there’s a lot of uncertainty the body is going through physically and emotionally. I’m not afraid of talking about it. I’m honored to be the messenger of menopause.”

She also starred as Donna Sheridan in the Broadway musical, “Mamma Mia!” from 2005-2009, at the show’s residency at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, and not surprisingly, the Las Vegas Review-Journal in 2005 named her the “Most Talented Female Entertainer of Las Vegas”

Son Parker is a junior in high school now, “and has lots of time to decide on a career. And he’s home alone, fending for himself, while mom does a show in Hawaii. I’m certain he’ll enjoy his independence,” said Jac. Unlike Rose, however, she’s not nudging him into the business called show…

And that’s Show Biz…

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“Gypsy”

A Broadway musical with book by Arthur Laurents, music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim; produced by the I’m a Bright Kid Foundation

What: A fable about an ambitious, determined stage mother, Rose, and her two daughters, June and Louise, who seek fame and fortune in the world of burlesque and vaudeville, in the early 20^th Century

Where: Paliku Theatre, Windward Community College

When: At 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 4 p.m. Sundays, Aug.8 through Aug. 24

Tickets: $34 to $44 for adults, $29 for students 12-18,  military and seniors and $24 for children, plus fees; visit https://cur8.com/projects/24380 or imabrightkid.org/ticket

Creative team, cast list

Ahnya Chang is both director and choreographer of “Gypsy.”

The creative team also includes Clarke Bright (music director), Omnia Nova (costume designer), Janine Myers (lighting designer), and Deanne Kennedy (set designer).

Jacquelyn Holland-Wright leads the cast as Mama Rose, and other lead players include Tani Siu as Louise, Rockelle Kim as June, Swaine Kaui as Herbie, Drew Bright as Tulsa, Tom Holowach as Pop, Ligaya Stice as Tessie Tura, Faith Kawai as Mazeppa, Camille Michel as Electra, Katy Akitake and Chelsea Medeiros alternating as Baby June and Liliy Dayao and Hayden Lau alternating as Baby Louise.