Through the , students at Windward Community College are bringing pop culture to the Palik¨± Theatre. Two original one-act productions, J-Pop Demon Killaz and The Hangry Games, will run from April 24 to May 3.

Directed by Taurie Kinoshita, the productions highlight emerging student performers through fast-paced storytelling, stylized stage combat and comedic satire. These projects reflect the Â鶹´«Ã½ Conservatory of Performing Arts¡¯ commitment to hands-on learning in acting, movement and stage production.

J-Pop Demon Killaz, written by alumna Noalani Helel¨¡, is set on Oʻahu and follows three local young women pursuing careers in the music industry while confronting supernatural challenges. The play combines humor, music and action-driven storytelling through a Â鶹´«Ã½-based perspective influenced by global pop culture.

The Hangry Games, written by alumnus Kekoa A. Shope, reimagines a dystopian competition in which survival depends on resourcefulness, resilience and determination. The production incorporates physical performance elements and topical humor that reflect current events, themes of power and scarcity.

Each production runs approximately one hour. They are recommended for audiences 14 and older due to staged violence, language and mature themes.

Performance Schedule

Fridays and Saturdays

• April 24, 25 and May 1, 2–7:30 p.m.

Thursday

• April 30–7:30 p.m.

Sundays

• April 26 and May 3–3 p.m.

Tickets may be or in person at the box office one hour prior to showtime. Student tickets are available in person only. For ticket information, contact the Palik¨± Theatre box office at (808) 235-7315 or paliku@hawaii.edu.

For more information about the Â鶹´«Ã½ Conservatory of Performing Arts and theatre courses at Windward Community College, visit . Additional information is available from Professor Nicolas Logue at logue@hawaii.edu or (808) 236-9138.

The University of Â鶹´«Ã½ at ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹ will debut , a new hana keaka (Hawaiian theatre work) that takes audiences on a journey of community rebuilding in the wake of the Lahaina wildfires. The production honors those who were lost, those who survived, and those who still carry the weight of rebuilding on Maui. Performances run March 4–8 in the Earle Ernst Lab Theatre at Kennedy Theatre.

Created by UH ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹ master of fine arts (MFA) candidate Ikaika Mendez, Lele Wale does not seek to recreate the tragic wildfires. Instead, the work moves through memory, music and movement to create space to remember, grieve and reflect on what comes next for both people and place. For Mendez, a Maui native, Lahaina holds deep personal meaning.

“Although I am from Kanaio, Lahaina became the place where I learned what it meant to be a performer in service to people and place¡­working at the Feast at Lele Lūʻau at just 15 years old,¡± said Mendez. “I learned discipline, responsibility and the power of storytelling through music and movement. That experience deeply influenced my path, leading me to pursue education in music, ʻōlelo Â鶹´«Ã½ (Hawaiian language), and ultimately my MFA in hana keaka.¡±

Voices of place

Lele is the traditional place name for Lahaina. In ʻōlelo Â鶹´«Ã½, lele wale evokes prayer and speaks to motion, as well as the act of releasing. The hana keaka is performed in a combination of ʻōlelo Â鶹´«Ã½, Â鶹´«Ã½ Creole English (Pidgin) and English intertwined with live music, hula and imagery.

“There are experiences, emotions and understandings that cannot be fully expressed in English, so we speak them, sing them and chant them in ʻōlelo Â鶹´«Ã½,¡± said Mendez. “At the same time, Pidgin and English reflect the lived reality of Lahaina today: the sounds of home, work, family and community.¡±

Ticket information

Performances are Wednesday through Saturday at 7:30 p.m., with a Sunday matinee at 2 p.m.

A free post-show Q&A with the director and cast will follow the Friday, March 6th performance for ticket holders.

Content advisories: Covers themes connected to wildfire, loss of life, strong language, haze effects and flashing lights. Questions about tickets or accessibility can be directed to ktbox@hawaii.edu or (808) 956-7655.

This article by Native Hawaiian Initiative Alakaʻi (Coordinator) at the University of Â鶹´«Ã½ at ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹ Kamakanaokealoha Aquino was first published in .

As we begin this new year, let us take a moment to reflect on 2025. During the 2024-2025 academic year, the University of Â鶹´«Ã½ awarded 2,086 degrees and certificates to Native Hawaiians. As of fall 2025, there are 12,618 Native Hawaiians enrolled.

There are so many accomplishments by students, faculty, staff, and administrators, to programs, community outreach, and engagement to highlight. Here are a few:

• Hear from Native Hawaiian community college students fulfilling their kuleana: Cathryn Krueger, Â鶹´«Ã½ CC; Kamananui Anderson, Honolulu CC; Melanie Camat, Kapiʻolani CC; Hiʻilani Cremer, Kauaʻi CC; Stevie Puna, Leeward CC; ʻAleʻa Kimokeo, UH Maui College; Kauakaweli Haili-Nakamoto, Windward CC.
• UH Hilo honored Mary Kawena Pukui with a panel that coincided with Women¡¯s History Month and her posthumous selection as a 2025 honoree for the U.S. Mint¡¯s Native American $1 coin.
• The Hawaiian collection at the UH Hilo Edwin H. Moʻokini Library was named the Edith Kanakaʻole Hawaiian Collection.
• UH West Oʻahu hosted a two-day ʻAha Hoʻoponopono with 300 haku hoʻoponopono, social sector professionals, aloha ʻ¨¡¾±²Ô²¹ practitioners, and community members.
• UH ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹¡¯s Hawaiian Theatre program celebrated its 10th anniversary with its latest Hawaiian language production Puana, and an invitation to perform at the Kia Mau international Indigenous-led performing arts festival in Aotearoa.
• Windward CC extended its Hawaiian studies program to paʻahao incarcerated at the Saguaro Correctional Center in Arizona, with 25 students enrolled in their first course.
• Haʻina Ko Wehi: Celebrating West Maui in Mele a project by students from UH Maui College¡¯s Institute of Hawaiian Music was named Compilation Album of the Year at the 2025 N¨¡ H¨­k¨± Hanohano Awards.
• Honolulu Community College hosted a two-day Indigenous education symposium ʻAha K¨±kalahale 2025, uplifting Hawaiian knowledge funded by the K¨±kalahale Title III Grant and in partnership with Kanaeokana and Pacific Rim Concepts.
• UH ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹ Native Hawaiian Student Services¡¯ Hawaiian Youths Abroad program Japan took a cohort of 13 students and 6 faculty/staff to explore Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka, while retracing connections between the Hawaiian Kingdom and Japan.
• Kuiokalani L. Gapero succeeded Ernie Kaʻaumoana Wilson Jr. to the UH Board of Regents for a 5-year term.
• Winners of the Board of Regents Medal for Excellence in Teaching included: Mapuana Antonio (public health associate professor, UH ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹); Ashlee Kalauli (math instructor, Â鶹´«Ã½ CC); Tracie Kuʻuipo Losch (Hawaiian studies professor, Leeward CC); Mehana Kaʻiama Makaʻinaʻi (Hawaiian studies instructor, UH ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹); Peter Kalawaiʻa Moore (Hawaiian studies professor, Windward CC); and Jamaica Heolimeleikalani Osorio (political science associate professor, UH ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹).
• Kenny Kaʻaiakamanu-Quibilan received the UH ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹ P¨¡kela Award for being an outstanding academic advisor.
• Shayla Spotkaeff, a business management major and undergraduate research assistant at the Center for Oral History received the UH ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹ Student Employee of the Year Award.
• Ka Huli Ao Center for Excellence in Native Hawaiian Law at UH ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹ William S. Richardson School of Law celebrated 20 years.

A student film created at the University of Â鶹´«Ã½ at Mānoa has earned international recognition at the . “Praying Mantis,” written and directed by UH Mānoa student Hulita Drake, was named among the winners of the 2025 festival in the zero budget category.

The film tells the story of a young woman who attends a college costume party dressed as a praying mantis, only to find herself out of place until a chance encounter changes the course of her night. What begins as a seemingly romantic connection unravels into disappointment, sparking a journey of obsession, prayer and unexpected action.

Drake collaborated with fellow UH students Lauren Piehler, who served as cinematographer, and AJ Taylor, who handled sound recording. The production also received support from other classmates, and community members Olivia Vela and Jase Andrews starred in leading roles.

Drake and members of the student team traveled to Auckland, New Zealand, for the festival¡¯s October 7 celebration event. The trip marked an opportunity to showcase their work on an international stage while connecting with filmmakers from across the Pacific.

“Receiving this recognition at the South Pacific International Film Festival is an incredible honor,” said Drake, who earned a BA in and is working on a second bachelor¡¯s degree in digital cinema from the UH Mānoa . “It¡¯s a testament to the creativity, dedication and collaboration of our entire UH Mānoa student team. Being able to share ‘Praying Mantis’ on an international stage and connect with filmmakers from across the Pacific has been an inspiring experience that I will always cherish.”

“Praying Mantis” is currently screening on the film festival circuit and isn¡¯t yet available to the public, but Drake hopes to release it on YouTube in the future.

The South Pacific International Film Festival highlights emerging and independent filmmakers from across the region. This year¡¯s slate featured winners from the U.S., New Zealand, Indonesia and Fiji. “Praying Mantis” was one of three films from the U.S. selected for recognition.

The stage at Windward Community College¡¯s will transform into one of ±á²¹·É²¹¾±ʻ¾±¡¯²õ eeriest landscapes in November, when the Â鶹´«Ã½ Conservatory of Performing Arts presents The Green Lady of Wahiaw¨¡ and Other Local Ghost Stories. Directed by Taurie Kinoshita, the premiere runs November 7–16.

Rooted in folklore, urban legends and historical accounts, the production reimagines some of ±á²¹·É²¹¾±ʻ¾±¡¯²õ most spine-tingling ghost stories¡ªfrom the moss-haired Green Lady who terrifies Wahiaw¨¡ gulch, to the blank-faced apparition who lurks in mirrors at Kahala Mall, to the infamous Kaimuk¨© house haunted by a malevolent spirit.

The title tale, The Green Lady of Wahiaw¨¡, dates back to 1957 when children first reported sightings of a foul-smelling, seaweed-draped figure near Wahiaw¨¡ Elementary. Over the decades, the legend became a cautionary fable meant to keep children from straying into the dangerous gulch.

The play also dramatizes The Faceless Woman, a ghost drawn from y¨­kai (Japanese supernatural beings) folklore and local reports from the old Waiʻalae Drive-In. Another vignette explores the Kasha of Kaimuk¨©, a poltergeist or corpse-devouring demon said to torment those who enter its house.

Spanning the 1920s to present day, the show also incorporates stories tied to the Pali Highway and Japanese internment camps, weaving together themes of fear, bias, courage and faith. Each tale is staged in a unique style—film noir, realism, expressionism—offering audiences a theatrical journey into the supernatural side of Â鶹´«Ã½.

Performances are recommended for ages 13 and up due to adult themes, language and minor stage violence.

Showtimes:

• November 7, 8, 14, 15 (Fridays and Saturdays) at 7:30 p.m.
• November 13 (Thursday) at 7:30 p.m.
• November 9, 16 (Sundays) at 3 p.m.

Tickets: $25 General; $20 Seniors, active military, University of Â鶹´«Ã½ faculty and staff, and Â鶹´«Ã½ Department of Education educators; $15 Students (with ID, in person only). Purchase online at or at the box office one hour prior to showtime.

This week¡¯s UH News Image of the Week is from the Kauaʻi Community College Performing Arts Center.

The Kauaʻi performances of RENT August 8–10 mark the UH ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹ production’s first appearance outside of Oʻahu, offering new audiences a chance to experience one of the most impactful works in modern musical theatre, through a uniquely ʻohana lens.

More on RENT at the Kauaʻi CC Performing Arts Center.

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A world-renowned kabuki actor is bringing a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to Â鶹´«Ã½ this summer. Ichikawa Monnosuke VIII, an eighth-generation kabuki master, will lead an intensive workshop at the University of Â鶹´«Ã½ at ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹ August 1–18, offering rare, hands-on training in this vibrant classical Japanese art form.

“This opportunity to train in kabuki with a professional is truly unique,” said UH ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹ theatre professor Julie Iezzi. “Nowhere else in the world, not even in Japan, can those outside of the tradition train under a kabuki actor.”

Spirit of kabuki

The two-week workshop, offered Mondays through Fridays through UH ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹¡¯s and Department of , is open to students, alumni, and community members, and will focus on Kabuki movement and vocal training. Two course tracks, credit and non-credit, are available for and for $1,350 (non-credit) and $1,500 (credit). The program ends with a recital showcasing students’ work on August 18th at 4 p.m. in the Earle Ernst Laboratory Theatre.

“Different from the realism of Western theatre, I hope students will learn the unique performance techniques of kabuki, which express the spirit of a character while also valuing the beauty of form,” Monnosuke said.

Eighth-generation master

Monnosuke, whose family¡¯s kabuki lineage dates back to 1713, is no stranger to UH. In 2024, he and his apprentices trained student actors for UH ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹¡¯s English-language kabuki production, The Maiden Benten and the Bandits of the White Waves. That production not only sold out performances but also received a first-ever invitation to perform in Japan, where it was enthusiastically received.

Kabuki has deep roots in Â鶹´«Ã½. In fact, the university staged the first known English-language kabuki production in the islands 100 years ago. Today, UH ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹ is helping keep that legacy alive.

• Related UH News story: 100 years of Â鶹´«Ã½ Kabuki in English: Masters from Japan train UH actors, December 10, 2023

Kabuki legacy

With guidance from Iezzi, UH ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹¡¯s theatre and dance department is breathing new life into English-language kabuki, an art form that flourished on the Kennedy Theatre stage under the leadership of late UH ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹ Professor James R. Brandon and master kabuki actor Nakamura Matagor¨­ II, with vital support from community artists Onoe Kikunobu (dance) Yamada Chie (music) and Joji Wago (wigs and makeup).

Monnosuke and his wife, Yukika, first met Iezzi in 2016, already aware of the university¡¯s rich kabuki traditions and eager to support its continuation.

“They were wondering about future plans for kabuki, and actually
came at the perfect time, since I, too, was searching for artists interested in helping to rebuild the complex infrastructure of knowledge necessary to continue doing kabuki productions,” Iezzi said.

, or contact iezzi@hawaii.edu, (808) 956-4377.

alumnus Brutus La Benz has long been a familiar face on Â鶹´«Ã½ television screens appearing in commercials for everything from Texaco and 7-Eleven to Kona Brewing Company and the Â鶹´«Ã½ Quit Tobacco campaign. But his big break came this spring, when he debuted as Lilo¡¯s kumu hula (hula teacher) in Disney¡¯s live-action Lilo & Stitch, a box office hit that soared past the $1 billion mark this July.

Before landing a role in the major Disney film, La Benz¡¯s earliest acting stage was his family¡¯s living room in Kailua. As a kid, he and his brother would spend hours performing scenes from hit flicks Wayne¡¯s World and Tommy Boy after summer fun.

“A lot of times we would just kind of memorize lines and reenact them. And I always thought that was fun,” he said.

That early love for performance stuck. The Olomana native can still recite skits from the late, beloved Â鶹´«Ã½ comedian Rap Replinger—classic jokes he proudly calls “scripture.”

La Benz, a Punahou School graduate, earned degrees in (Hawaiian language) and from the UH ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹ . It was in those ʻ¨­±ô±ð±ô´Ç classes he says a passion for acting truly began to grow.

“In order to help us learn the sentence structures and the new vocabulary, some of them would ask us to do a lot of mini skits, just so that we could memorize the lines and patterns,” La Benz added. “Once I figured out we can make these funny skits and still learn, that was really cool.”

That energy led him to the stage in 2004, when he starred in Kamapuaʻa, a Hawaiian-language stage production directed by Tammy Hailiʻōpua Baker, founder of UH ²Ñ¨¡²Ô´Ç²¹¡¯s . It¡¯s there he learned how to tell stories through action, not just words.

“Because many didn’t understand Hawaiian language, the words needed to come across in the way we acted. And so that was challenging, but also I think that’s what made us all really, really fun and decent actors,” La Benz said.

Seeking permission

In 2023, when Disney offered him the “kumu hula” role, La Benz actually hesitated. A trained ʻ¨­lapa hula (hula dancer) under Kumu Hula Snowbird Bento, he wasn¡¯t sure if taking the role of a kumu hula on screen was appropriate.

“My initial reaction was I better call my kumu first to make sure that it¡¯s okay to portray a kumu,” La Benz said.

With her blessing, he stepped into it.

“He Mele No Lilo” (A song for the lost)

Filming for the lively scene took place at the Kokokahi YMCA in Kailua, and La Benz, who has a 9-year-old daughter, said it felt natural.

“It was just like having a bunch of my daughters there. They were super goofy. I felt more like I was being a parent and modeling after how I see my kumu interact with her students at those ages,” he said.

In addition to his role as Lilo¡¯s kumu hula, La Benz also served as the body double for the alien character Jumba, performing the character¡¯s physical movements on set.

His daughter, Kealaleih¨­k¨± lit up at the film¡¯s Â鶹´«Ã½ premiere.

“She was just staring into the screen, but when I came on she said, ‘Oooh! Daddy!!’”

Guiding life moments

Outside of acting, La Benz pours his heart into work as a kahu (officiant). He¡¯s spent more than a decade overseeing weddings, blessings and farewells.

“Honored to be a part of different celebrations…making people feel safe and comfortable enough to celebrate or grieve in a way that they need to,” said La Benz.

He expressed deep gratitude for the opportunity to serve as a kahu and looks forward to taking on new acting roles but says above all, being a dad is the role he cherishes most.

—By Moanikeʻala Nabarro