Aloha Performing Arts Company has selected the roster of shows for its 30th production season, and its first as owner of the Aloha Theatre in Kainaliu.
APAC’s mainstage season begins in October with “Plan 9 from Outer Space,” a new, campy, silly sci-fi comedy adapted from the 1959 Ed Wood film of the same name, claimed by many to be the worst movie ever made. The stage adaptation, by Mark Landon Smith, features aliens in tights and skating skirts, maniacal military brass, stupid earthlings, grave-robbing zombies, and lots of not-so-special special effects. A crazy, fun Halloween excursion! The performance run is Oct. 14-30.
APAC’s holiday show combines two cherished concepts: Broadway and Christmas. A group of tourists find themselves snowed in to a theater with a live band and a comical tour guide on Christmas Eve, and magic happens.
“Christmas on Broadway” is a charming two-hour sampling of Broadway snippets and Christmas cheer, running Dec. 2-18. This witty musical revue, created and arranged by Rick Lewis, is a warm, funny, lighthearted tribute to the Yuletide season, filled with delightful dancing, enchanting music, and a sweet surprise. In addition to timeless classics, there are new songs written just for the show, making it a perfect holiday outing.
Feb. 10 through March 12, 2017, snowbirds and local theater fans alike will be treated to “Jesus Christ Superstar,” the hard-driving rock opera by the legendary team of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice. This enduring musical phenomenon started as a concept album in 1970 and debuted on Broadway in 1971. It has been revived on the Great White Way three times since. The story is loosely based on the Gospel accounts of the last week of Jesus’ life. It highlights the probable political and interpersonal power struggle between Jesus and Judas Iscariot. The controversial work offers a free interpretation of the well known story, with ironic contemporary allusions and modern slang throughout. A pure, sung-through rock and roll experience for the ages.
“The Miracle Worker,” a moving drama by William Gibson, graces the Aloha Theatre stage May 5-21, 2017. Based on Helen Keller’s autobiography, “The Story of My Life,” the play is set in the late 1880s in Alabama. An illness renders infant Helen blind, deaf, and mute. Pitied and badly spoiled by her parents, she has turned into a wild, angry, tantrum-throwing child in control of the household. Desperate, the Kellers hire Annie Sullivan from Boston to serve as governess and teacher for their daughter. After several fierce battles, Annie finally teaches Helen discipline through persistence and language through hand signals, a double breakthrough that changes Helen’s life and has a direct effect on the lives of everyone in the family. An American classic retold for a new generation.
The 2016-17 APAC season closes with “Once on this Island Jr.,” a one-act musical with book and lyrics by Lynn Ahrens and music by Stephen Flaherty. Based on the 1985 novel “My Love, My Love, or The Peasant Girl,” by Rosa Guy, it is set in the French Antilles. The show, with its poignant story and catchy Caribbean-flavored score, uses elements from “Romeo and Juliet” as well as “The Little Mermaid” to enchant the denizens of a tropical island. Singing gods, dancing story-tellers, and an array of colorful villagers will all be played by Kona youngsters age 18 and under.
Season tickets will be available to the public starting Thursday, and may be purchased online at www.apachawaii.org, or by calling 322-9924 between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday.