60th Season at UHM Kennedy Theatre to Include World Premiere Hana Keaka, Dance Concerts, and More

Kennedy Theatre's 60th production season will be a celebration of the past, present, and future of Theatre and Dance at UHM Kennedy Theatre.

MAINSTAGE SEASON

The Mainstage Season begins in October with a newly devised, innovative, dance and theatrical performance that questions traditional binary assumptions in society and education while celebrating individual queerness in an imagined non-binary world titled Are We There Yet, Baby? This multi-disciplinary collaboration is led by Associate Professor of Dance Pei-Ling Kao. In April, The Maiden Benten and the Bandits of the White Waves, celebrates the long tradition of kabuki in Hawaiʻi, and marks the 100th anniversary of English-language kabuki productions at the University of Hawaiʻi as well as Kennedy Theatre's 60th birthday.

PRIME TIME SERIES

The Prime Time Series features the culminating thesis works of MFA directors, dancers, choreographers, playwrights, and MFA/BFA dance candidates. This year's Primetime Series opens in September with the world premiere production of Kaisara, an original hana keaka (Hawaiian Theatre) written and directed by MFA Candidate Iāsona Kaper. This historical drama with a play-within-a-play explores the political context of an ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi translation of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar that was published in 1896. November features Ōta Shōgo's The Water Station, directed by MFA Candidate Marguerite Saxton. This unique production has no spoken dialogue but utilizes stylized movement and stage directions to bring the play to life. The world premiere performance of Glitter in the Paʻakai -a brand new hana keaka written and directed by MFA candidate Joshua "Baba" Kamoani'ala Tavares takes the stage in early February 2024. This hana keaka production is performed in ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi, English and Hawaiian Creole English with hula and mele at the heart of the story focused on family, fragile relationships, and the complexities of navigating loss, identity, and healing. In early March, the Primetime Series finale, BFA/MFA Dance Concert closes out the season as it spotlights student choreographies on the eve of graduation.

LATE NIGHT SERIES

Late Night Theatre Company strives to create relevant and innovative performance art-making that dismantles oppression, fosters skills in a pre-professional environment, and empowers our local, national, and global communities. Late Night productions are by, for, and about UHM students. The Late Night Theatre Company's 2023-2024 season titles will be announced over the summer. Please be sure to check online for updates and more information.

Kennedy Theatre program and schedule are subject to change.

Mainstage Season - on the Kennedy Theatre Mainstage

Are We There Yet, Baby?

Mainstage Dance Concert
Directed by Pei-Ling Kao

October 20-22, 27 & 29, 2023* - FRI/SAT 7:30pm & SUN 2:00pm
*No Saturday 10/28 performance (due to campus parking limitations for UH Football game)
Pre-Show Chat: 6:45pm before Saturday 10/21 performance

Are We There Yet, Baby? is a newly devised, innovative, and design-driven dance and theatrical performance that questions traditional binary assumptions in society and education, and celebrates individual queerness in an imagined non-binary world. The process-oriented performance is directed and created by Associate Professor of Dance Pei-Ling Kao in collaboration with multi-disciplinary artists and māhū: Kalikopuanoheaokalani Aiu, Mescalero Apache, and Mexika-Chichimeca/Cano; the cihuaiolo butch queen, Cuauhtémoc Peranda; theatre artist, educator, and activist fa'afafine, Kiki Rivera; transgender queer composer, Ariel Wessendorf, and dramaturg, Dr. Markus Wessendorf, together with the cast members.

The Maiden Benten and the Bandits of the White Waves

(Benten Musume Meo no Shiranami)
Kabuki - Celebrating 100 years of English Kabuki at UHM!
Written by Kawatake Mokuami
Translator, Adaptor, and Project Director: Julie A. Iezzi
Artistic Advisor: Ichikawa Monnosuke VIII
April 19-21 & 26-28, 2024 - FRI/SAT 7:30pm & SUN 2:00pm
Pre-Show Chats: 6:45pm before Saturday 4/20 & 4:27 performances

A popular kabuki play, The Maiden Benten and the Bandits of the White Waves, commonly known as Benten Kozō, features five distinctive thieves with a mastery of masquerade, and a command of language from the gutter to the poetically sublime. Together with a full array of colorful kabuki characters, their schemes and back stories lead to shocking revelations, surprising reunions, startling twists and ultimately result in the realization that one cannot escape karma-though in meeting it, one need not abandon spectacle or beauty.

This production celebrates the long tradition of kabuki in Hawaiʻi, and marks the 100th anniversary of English-language kabuki productions at the University of Hawaiʻi as well as Kennedy Theatreʻs 60th birthday. Benten Kozō, presented in the 1963-64 inaugural season, is also a magnificent showcase for the hanamichi, an acting pathway through the audience which fosters an intimacy between actors and audience members. To this day, Kennedy Theatre remains the only theatre in the United States designed specifically to accommodate a hanamichi. As in the previous 100 years, we are fortunate and grateful to bring community artists, guest artists from Japan, and UHM faculty, staff and students together to collaborate and ensure that regional "Hawaiʻi kabuki" thrives for the next 100 years.

Mainstage Season - Ticket Prices

Regularly Priced Tickets:

$8 UHM Student with current valid UHM ID

$15 Non-UHM Student/Youth

$20 UHAA Member with card

$22 UH Faculty/Staff, Military, Senior

$25 Regular (Adult)

First Saturday Mainstage performances are "Throwback Saturday" - prices are from the good ol' days:
$5 UHM Student
$10 Other Discount Groups
$15 Regular (Adult)
"Throwback Saturday" pricing only valid for the SAT October 21, 2023 and SAT April 20, 2024 performances.

Prime Time Series - in the Earle Ernst Lab Theatre

Kaisara

A World Premiere Hana Keaka Production
Written and Directed by MFA Candidate Iāsona Kaper
September 20-24, 2023* - WED-FRI 7:30pm & SUN 2:00pm and 7:30pm
*No Saturday 9/23 performance (due to campus parking limitations for UH Football game)
Post Show Q&A following the Friday performance

In 1896, four scenes from William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar were translated into ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi by James N. K. Keola and published in Ka Nupepa Kuokoa. What would have happened if Keola had asked other Kanaka Maoli intellectuals of his time to participate in a reading of these scenes? Kaisara imagines this gathering, exploring the intersection between Shakespeare's portrayal of Ancient Rome and the political landscape of Hawaiʻi in the 1890s to ask timeless questions about division, conspiracy, and political violence.

This hana keaka production will be performed in ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi and English.

The Water Station

Written by Ōta Shōgo
Directed by MFA Candidate Marguerite Saxton
November 15-19, 2023 - WED-SAT 7:30pm & SUN 2:00pm
Post Show Q&A following the Friday performance

In Ōta Shōgo's The Water Station, a series of travelers encounter a tap of running water, and sometimes each other, in the course of their migration journeys. This production has no dialogue but according to Ōta Shōgo, "there are words here ... you just can't hear them". The Water Station navigates the loss of identity and purpose. We see similar tropes in our lives during these times which have brought personal migrations along with many rearrangements of self and community.

Glitter in the Paʻakai

A World Premiere Hana Keaka Production
Written and Directed by MFA Candidate Joshua "Baba" Kamoani'ala Tavares
February 7-11, 2024 - WED-SAT 7:30pm & SUN 2:00pm
Post Show Q&A following the Friday performance

After moving away nearly a decade ago, Kaʻōnohi reluctantly returns home to attend his nephew's first birthday lūʻau in Hōnaunau, Kona. No longer separated by the vast distance, Kaʻōnohi must examine his fragile relationship with his family members who are struggling with their own precarious reality. Hula and mele are at the heart of this story, revealing the polarizing complexities of this Hawaiian ʻohana as they navigate loss, identity and healing.

This hana keaka production will be performed in a combination of ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi, English and Hawaiian Creole English.

BFA/MFA Dance Concert

Directed by Kara Jhalak Miller
March 6-10, 2024 - WED-SAT 7:30pm & SUN 2:00pm
Post Show Q&A following the Friday performance

The UHM Department of Theatre and Dance presents a dynamic dance concert consisting of original Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) Senior Projects and Master of Fine Arts (MFA) Creative Project choreography. This dance production is a celebration of the creativity of our undergraduate and graduate dancers and highlights their artistic development. The concert features selected works and new premiere performances for both the stage and screen.

Primetime Series - Ticket Prices

$8 UHM Student with current valid UHM ID
$13 Non-UHM Student/Youth
$16 UH Faculty/Staff, Military, Senior

$18 Regular (Adult)

Late Night Series (Fall 2023/Spring 2024)

Late Night Theatre Company strives to create relevant and innovative performance art-making that dismantles oppression, fosters skills in a pre-professional environment, and empowers our local, national, and global communities. Late Night productions are by, for, and about UHM students. Late Night Theatre Company's 2023-24 season will be announced over the summer. Performances will take place in October 2023 and April 2024. Please be sure to check online for updates and more information.

Late Night Series - Ticket Prices

$5 UHM Student
$8 Discount Groups (Military, Senior, UH Faculty/Staff, Non-UH Manoa Students with Valid ID)
$10 Regular (Adult)

To Purchase Tickets

Tickets to all Mainstage and Primetime productions will go on sale over the summer and may be purchased online at www.etickethawaii.com, at the Stan Sheriff Box Office, and at the Kennedy Theatre Box Office (during sale periods only). Tickets to all Late Night Theatre Company performances will only be available at the Kennedy Theatre Box Office starting one hour before each performance.

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