KEN IGE / KIGE @STAR-BULLETIN.COM
Momohana the peach girl (Kristin Ing, left) and Momotaro the peach boy (Andrew Sakaguchi, front) sneak into the lair of Kishimojin, the mother goddess of all demons. They bring with them Kitsune the fox (Greg Zane) and Kiji the pheasant (Annie Mottler, back).
While he has yet to be cast in a pidgin fairytale, Momotaro the Peach Boy will take the local stage anyway this weekend anyway as Hawaii Ballet Theatre presents "Momotaro and Other Delights." Andrew Sakaguchi stars as the well-known Japanese hero in a modern ballet inspired by one of the country's best known fairytales. Reinventing Japan’s tales
By John Berger
jberger@starbulletin.com"This is the third incarnation of the ballet," Sakaguchi said as he was preparing for a rehearsal at Punahou School on Tuesday. "We did it as a youth concert series out at Leeward Community College back in February, and I think about 6,000 school children saw us during that run. But this version came about for the recital of Punahou dance school that we did in the spring of 2001. We did that one here as an all-student production, except that I was Momotaro."
Sakaguchi grew up with Momotaro and other Japanese fairytale characters, as well as with their European-American counterparts such as Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella.
"There was a series of Japanese folk tales in these illustrated books, so (I grew up) singing the song and everything, with my grandmother reading the story to me," Sakaguchi said. The story tells of an old couple who find a peach floating in a river. Out of the peach comes a miraculous child, Momotaro, who grows into a youth of supernatural strength and courage (and is, in fact, an arahitogami, or divine being in human form).
Eventually, youthful Momotaro goes forth to destroy the oni (ogres or demons) that have been raiding Japan. He defeats them with the assistance of three loyal companions -- a dog, a monkey and a pheasant -- and returns home a hero.
While the story has been known to countless generations of Japanese children, Sakaguchi is sharing something new that's based on the familiar fairytale. The ballet will both feature a new villain and a new heroine, namely Momotaro's sister, Momohana.
"We've invented the character of Momohana, and we did that primarily for the recital, because we needed to have a female lead character," he said. "Kristen Ing went on the Internet and looked up all the different Japanese villains and spirits to choose from, and that's how we discovered Kishimojin who, according to legend or myth, stole the souls of children."
Where: Dillingham Hall, Punahou School ‘Momotaro and Other Delights’
Presented by Hawaii Ballet Theatre
When: 7:30 p.m. today, 2:30 p.m. tomorrow and 4 p.m. Sunday
Tickets: $16; $12 for ages 11 and younger, seniors and military
Call: 839-1696
Like her brother, Momohana enters the story as a peach floating in a river. The peach is discovered by a childless widow and Momohana pops out. The divine child eventually leaves conquer Kishimojin, a female oni who steals the souls of babies. (Ing, one of Sakaguchi's favorite dance partners "since high school," portrays Momohana, with Greg Zane as Kitsune the Fox and Annie Mottler as Kiji the pheasant.)
Along the way, Momohana meets a mysterious stranger (who turns out to be Momotaro), and the four of them overcome obstacles and challenges to recover the stolen souls.
"We're not telling an authentic Japanese legend ... but (we are) incorporating true Japanese mythical characters along the lines of reinventing a new fairytale," Sakaguchi said.
Ironically, despite Hawaii's large local Japanese population and the widespread interest in Japanese culture here, there is apparently only one other ballet piece with a Japanese fairytale theme. That one was done in the Netherlands about 10 years ago, which makes Sakaguchi's piece significant in several ways.
"It's completely new, and it's appropriate, because we're in Hawaii. We always do 'Nutcracker' ... or 'Cinderella' or any of these stories that originated in Europe in European companies, so it's definitely about time (we did something on our own)," he said.
Sakaguchi will also be performing in a "Boat Days" segment that will utilize his musical theater/jazz choreography in suggesting the romantic (in retrospect) days of old Honolulu. He describes it as "a little love story" that takes place at Aloha Tower.
"The recordings I used are by Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra ... and John Coltrane," he said. "Songs that were recorded during the '40s and '50s (that were) written in the '30s. Songs like 'Saturday Night's the Loneliest Night of the Week' and 'My One and Only Love' and 'Love Letters.' It's jazzy and upbeat, but also has some soft romantic moments."
The Po'okela Award-winning actor and choreographer (he received another last week for his work with Ka'ohi Yojo in choreographing Lisa Matsumoto's "On Dragonfly Wings") is already working on another project: He's directing and choreographing Diamond Head Theatre's upcoming production of "Chicago." The show opens Sept. 27.
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