"First Friday," April ’06

WAITING FOR A WAITRESS: Joy Alvarez, left, Stuart Sutton, Linda Huynh and Yisa Price found drinks hard to get when they started their "First Friday" celebration at Indigo. So many other people had the same idea that the three bar areas were gridlocked, the bartenders were overwhelmed and the waitresses had a hard time getting through the crowd. Fancy variations on the basic martini were the drink of choice for many of those who were able to be served.

SOME NUDITY REQUIRED?: Taurie Kinoshita enjoyed a cigarette while talking with Ryan Sueoka outside the ARTS at Marks Garage. Kinoshita's next theater project, a staging of Sarah Kane's "4.48 Psychosis," opens at the ARTS on April 21, and she's thinking of challenging the limits of local theater by specifying "some nudity required" in the playbill. Call 550-8457 for tickets.

DRINKING WINE, WINE, WINE: Dr. Victor Kwok, left, Yuri Nagata and Jon Emura explored the selection of wines available for tasting at the HASR Wine Co. on Pauahi Street. Some folks might have gone there to drink for free, but a lot of people bought a bottle or two to take home (HASR stands for Highly Allocated Spoiled Rotten -- an inside joke among the wine lovers who founded the company).

AND NOW, LET'S TRY THE GREEN ONE!: Gordian Boteilho-Torres paused before continuing his wine-tasting adventure with a cautious sip of Agwa, a green "herbal liquor" of South American origin that is imported from Holland.

CHECKING OUT THE STREET: Actor/director Russell Motter and actress Anette Kauahikaua watched the "First Friday" action on the corner of Pauahi and Nuuanu. The couple worked together earlier this year when Motter directed "Joe Turner's Come and Gone" for the Actors Group.