FL MORRIS / FMORRIS@STARBULLETIN.COM
Shari Lynn is Rosie and Jim Tharp is the bartender, Johnny, in Hawaii Pacific University's "Aloha Rosie's."
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Bizarre characters gather for zany last call
"Aloha Rosie's," presented by Hawaii Pacific University at 7:30 p.m. Thursdays, 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 4 p.m. Sundays, though Dec. 4. Also at 2 p.m. Nov. 19 and 7:30 p.m. Nov. 23. Tickets are $20. Call 375-1282.
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RUMOR has it that a sign at the gates of hell reads "Abandon hope, all ye who enter here!" Sitting through Hawaii Pacific University's production of "Aloha Rosie's," the third show by Norm Boroughs and his wife, HPU theater director Joyce Maltby, is more enjoyable than a trip to the netherworld. But it requires abandoning hope that a musical set in a Texas honky-tonk might have a score representative of that cultural milieu.
A plot with some sense of character development would be nice, too.
As a collection of original songs with little or no connection to each other, "Aloha Rosie's" is reminiscent of HPU's impressive 2004 production of "Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris," except that Brel is a magnificent writer even in translation. Boroughs goes for another audience entirely with his earnest songs about zany characters, flatulence, growing old and Our Solidarity with the People of New Orleans.
The premise is simple: Rosie and her husband have struck it rich, they've sold the place, and their "regulars" have been invited to closing night. What follows is a cross between a "Cheers" episode and a visit to a karaoke bar. Act I closes with a surprise; Act II is more of the same but more disjointed in terms of continuity or logic.
The only scintilla of suspense is whether sparks will fly between Dan, Rosie's son, back from Oregon, and Jenny, Dan's ex-girlfriend, back from Nashville to work as a waitress. We learn early that Dan's wife has died and Jenny is between boyfriends, so a guilt-free hook up is possible. Will it happen?
Ethan Okura (Dan) and Becky Maltby (Jenny), one of director Maltby's daughters, give creditable performances in two-dimensional roles.
We do learn a little more about several major characters:
The Devil, aka "Nathan," really is Satan, not just a local weirdo running around in red long johns, and he won the heart of a goddess, Madame Pilau, during a visit to Hawaii.
The Rev. Billy Sinfree can chant in Hawaiian and has Hawaiian genealogical tattoos.
Rosie is a serial killer who murdered three of her ex-boyfriends.
These revelations can't save the show from two topical numbers about New Orleans. Such cute numbers usually come across as a ploy for applause. These are no exception.
There are bright spots. Get past the shock of Shari Lynn's broad "country" accent and she's a winner in the title role. Lynn is, after all, no less country than any of the women who've played Rosie in previous productions. She closes Act I with a beautiful rendition of "Good Bye Old Friend" that nicely expresses Rosie's emotions as she prepares to leave the bar forever.
Glenn Cannon (the Devil) dominates with his polished performance as a Yiddish Satan. While many of his co-stars are on too long or play their characters too ponderously, Cannon is always on the money.
Kalani Brady (Sinfree) is another asset. "Other Roads," his first big number, isn't country but he makes it a highlight.
Andy Alvarado (Dos Ahole) does an outstanding job as singer and comic actor in the role of a bullfighter who decided to retire after a bull "ripped me a second one." It is saying a lot for Alvarado's performance that this is one of the few numbers in Act I that doesn't go on longer than it needs to.
Alan Picard (Charley) provides a jolt of comic energy with a number about a family that found fame and fortune after moving next to a nuclear power plant (If this sounds familiar it's because "Nuclear Power Plant" is being recycled from the original show, "Rosie's Place").
A previous show introduced a character named "Flatulent Phil," and Boroughs returns to the topic of intestinal gas with "Mama's Chile Beans," a number involving three gaseous men instead of one (another song uses lyrics that can't be repeated here; others may not be suitable for pre-teens).
Musical director Don Conover's small band gives this play stronger country credentials than its predecessors. Unfortunately, Conover carries much of the show on electric keyboards, and several numbers are done karaoke-style with performers singing to music tracks while the band sits idle.