On May 25, 26, 28, 29, and 30 the Lānaʻi Academy of Performing Arts performed a brand new, original musical in the Lānaʻi Playhouse. Island Below the Star is based on the James Rumsford fictional story of the same name, and the script was adapted by Sandy Patterson. The music and lyrics were written by graduating senior Grant Choo and myself, with an additional song by 2nd grader, Danish Mohzani (I'll get to that story later).
Sandy Patterson's initial idea to turn Island Below the Star into a live show got me excited and brought back some great memories. Back when I was a senior in college, I collaborated to write a musical called Freshmen Follies, and was even able to have it performed by the musical theater club on campus. It was an unbelievable experience and the most fun I've ever had. My favorite genre to write as a composer has always been musical theater--there's just something magical about a live show. I love the way you can connect with the audience and tell the story through the songs.
I couldn't wait to start writing the music, but as a songwriter, lyrics aren't my strong point. Then I met Grant Choo, a senior from the Class of 2013, who spent some time in Sandy Patterson's classroom every week as part of a work study program. I discovered that not only was he an extremely talented musician who sings and plays guitar and ukulele, but that he could also write great songs. I asked Grant if he would like to collaborate on writing songs for the show, and we began meeting after school several times a week to work on the music. I've written with many other songwriters, and I have to say that Grant is one of the best I've ever worked with. He has so many original ideas, and is extremely friendly and flexible when it comes to writing and rewriting--which is not always the case!
After a month or so, we had finished five songs, and Sandy had a good outline of the script done. It was time to hold auditions--many talented kids tried out, and it was difficult narrowing it down to a cast size of 22 actors and actresses. Rehearsals began after spring break, and at first, we kept it simple, doing acting games and teaching the kids the basics of theater. We wanted to get to know the strengths of each performer before we cast the parts.
During this time, Sandy completely rewrote the script to be much more conversational, kid friendly, and funny. She kept the original ideas and story in tact, but created characters that were tailored specifically for the kids we had cast in the show. Once we assigned the actors their roles, I got to see Sandy's fresh take on the story and characters, and I was inspired to write a few more songs specifically for each lead part.
One of our lead actors, 2nd grader Danish Mohzani, is an amazingly talented performer and musician. He is one of my piano students, and every lesson he does something that blows me away. Danish is a huge Bob Marley fan, and we asked him to play his part as if he was Bob Marley himself. Reggae music is Danish's favorite, so I asked him if he would like to try writing his own song. A week later, he blew me away again when he played me the song he wrote, called Go North.
Lānaʻi Resorts, LLC was kind enough to lend us the use of the Lānaʻi Playhouse for our rehearsals and performances. After the kids had the basics of the show down, we started rehearsing in the theater. About this time, we had Dave Jackson join our team as co-director (with Sandy Patterson). Dave minored in theater in college, and has been in several productions. He brought with him structure, discipline, and a lot of expertise and experience. The kids were a little intimidated at first because he's a big guy, but loosened up once they got to know him. He brought the best out of everyone, and I can't imagine doing the show without him.
I must also mention our choreographer, Glendaile Llamelo. Although she works at the A+ program after school until 5 o'clock, she made the time to come to many late rehearsals. She's a formally trained dancer, and she gave our actors some great instruction and even allowed them the freedom to come up with some of their own choreography.
In the end, we put on five great performances for the community in the Lānaʻi Playhouse. I'm so proud of all of the kids that were involved in the show. Each performance they got more confident, and by the last show, they were sad it was going to be over. They rehearsed every day after school for months and worked incredibly hard to make Island Below the Star into a success. There is an amazing amount of talent on Lānaʻi, and I hope this first production by the Lānaʻi Academy of Performing Arts will inspire many others to try out for the next show that we do.
The Lānaʻi Academy of Performing Arts is a new organization formed by Sandy Patterson and Matt Glickstein, with a goal of putting on many more productions for the community in the future. If you would like to make a donation, please make checks payable to:
Lānaʻi Academy of Performing Arts
c/o Matt Glickstein
PO Box 631903
Lānaʻi City, HI 96763
All of the original music from Island Below the Star is available online at iTunes, CD Baby, and Amazon. You may also contact Matt Glickstein at (808) 221-8926, or at mattglickstein@me.com to purchase a physical CD for the cost of $10.00.
We would also like to thank:
Lanai Resorts, LLC, Facility Use
Karen de Brum, Sound Equipment
Howard and Judy Glickstein, Program Printing
Grant Choo and Edward Giles, Lighting
Cody Patterson, Projections
Kerri Glickstein, Program and CD Formatting and Design
Emily Hera, Poster and Program Cover
Travis Turqueza, Poster Design
Travis Turqueza, Poster Design
Gaylien Kahoʻohalahala, Set Construction
Darren Lopez, Spotlight
Jerod Savage, Set Design
Cameron Patterson, Set Design and Facility Repairs
William Patterson, Videography, Set Design, and Facility Repairs
Mahina Romero, Lighting Equipment
Farah Omar, Uilani Romero,
Shelly Barfield, Zena Kageno, and Elizabeth Atok, extremely helpful parents
Shelly Barfield, Zena Kageno, and Elizabeth Atok, extremely helpful parents
And a special thanks to Kimberly Miyazawa Frank, who invited the Lānaʻi Academy of Performing Arts to perform at the Charity Walk on May 4th, and who also bought lei for each and every cast and crew member after their May 28th performance.
