PhotosbyKathryn Bender, Star-Bulletin
Bobo, center, played by Daniel Dabbs, is the subject of adulation in "Bobo & the Bird," one of four plays to be presented in Honolulu Theatre for Youth's Theatrefest Friday and Saturday.
A boy who takes flight.
A mother and daughter who can't communicate.
From the whimsical to the serious, the subjects of Honolulu Theatre for Youth's "Theatrefest '96" spring to life Friday and Saturday at Tenney Theatre.
But this time, the plays aren't simply for youths; they've also been written and are being performed by youths.
"Theatrefest" has been a self-
perpetuating project for 10 years. "A lot of our performers started out in an audience," said Daniel A. Kelin II, director of drama education for HTY. "They thought it was cool and wanted to try it for themselves. That's a way to keep theater alive."
Over the years, many students who started as actors have made the leap into play writing, which he considers the most important aspect of theater.
In Hawaii, having a regional writing voice is especially important because, as Kelin said one student told him, "I want to understand that all plays are not written by dead white men."
Although the end result looks like loads of fun, Kelin demonstrated his respect for his pupils' ability by demanding their best.
"This is not just about learning lines and being on stage. I was telling students, 'If this is what you can do, give me 10 percent or 20 percent more.'
"We go in with the idea that we're going to stretch them, so that they feel better about performing, about expressing themselves, so that they become better people in the process.
"It's about pushing yourself to take risks and seeing that it's OK to make mistakes, to stumble a few times. That's the way you learn."
The Liholiho Elementary School student also performed in "Scrooge" last year.
Although a series of three-hour and all-day rehearsals sometimes left him tired, in addition to taking him away from soccer and tennis practices, he tells himself "Just do it," while exploring life's many options.
Kelin knows what it's like to be a child on stage, having put on shows as young as age 9. As a result, he manages to serve up a deft blend of discipline and encouragement.
"I tended to fool around and have fun," Kelin said. "I was truly wild and all over the place.
"We would get up in front of English class and create informal shows. We had no rehearsal, no money, no set, no money for costumes. That's the approach I had. It was all about having a good time and trying to find the best way to do it."
"Theatrefest," offers a firsthand taste of the limitations of the medium and budgets, while inviting the young playwrights to test their boundless imaginations.
Thirteen-year-old playwright Timothy Yasutake, for instance, had envisioned a tiny frog making a nuisance of itself in "Zombie Joe." Well, actors are not palm-sized.
And Bruce Savaille, the 25-year-old writer of "Bobo & the Bird" - in which a young boy takes flight in an attempt to flee from his miserable reality - wanted his character in the air physically.
As the drama unfolded, the magic of "flight" is achieved through dance and a set that includes tables and chairs - platforms from which Bobo steps up and down.
"Many times what they were seeing in their head was very different from what they were seeing on stage," Kelin said. "We want them to stand up for their ideas, but also to find other ways to explore them. This is not going to be 'Miss Saigon,' where they have a helicopter on stage.' "
Yasutake, who completed 19 rewrites, didn't mind the yearlong exercise. "From the beginning he (Kelin) told us that if we're writing a play, we're gonna have to do 20 to 30 rewrites."
Already a diplomat, Yasutake thought it wise to let his director Juan Balila do his job, rather than be a backseat director.
"Sometimes it was hard to keep quiet, but I left it up to my director what to put on stage. I think he did a good job."
Yasutake, who is home-schooled and says his favorite subject is math, signed up for the HTY play-writing class to improve his English skills, but he came away with much more.
"It opened up new insights on how much goes into a play. I never realized how much work goes into anything."
Was he impressed by the result?
"Yes. I was impressed just by the fact that it was being done. I'd never seen so much effort go into something I'd done before."
What: Theatrefest:
Where: Tenney Theatre, St. Andrew's Cathedral
"Zombie Joe" by Timothy Yasutake, Juan Balila director
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday
Tickets: $10; $7.50 for high school and college students with I.D.; $5 for youths and seniors 60 and older
Call: 839-9885 for tickets or information on upcoming "Theatrefest" classes