FL MORRIS / FMORRIS@STARBULLETIN.COM
Marcus Oshiro, left, as Tamotsu, and Shawn Thomsen, as Hitoshi, are drunk on sake in a scene from Kumu Kahua's "Obake."
Kumu Kahua’s
‘Obake’ is thrilling,
chilling drama
"Obake" continues at 8 p.m. Thursdays to Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays through Nov. 30 at Kumu Kahua Theatre, 46 Merchant St. Tickets are $16. Call 536-4444.
A proud and cruel man receives a well-deserved but horrible punishment when the woman he murdered returns as a terrifying obake (ghost) cat in the world-premiere production of "Obake" at Kumu Kahua Theatre.
For a review to reveal that much information about the outcome of a story would be unprofessional in most circumstances, but playwright Edward Sakamoto is saluting a genre brought to Hawaii by Japanese immigrants more than a century ago, and fans can anticipate the trajectory of the story.
Just as each episode of the old "Incredible Hulk" series invariably built to the moment when David Banner morphed into the Hulk, a popular type of obake story always involves a cruel and selfish man who abuses and murders a beautiful woman, then sufferers horribly when she is avenged by a supernatural catlike creature. The outcome is known, but the story is no less thrilling -- and chilling.
Sakamoto and director James A. Nakamoto collaborate brilliantly in creating a perfect theatrical experience. "Obake" is one of Kumu Kahua's best dramatic productions in recent memory. Everything comes together perfectly -- direction, cast, stage crew.
"Obake" is also one of the scariest shows Honolulu is likely to see staged by any local theater group.
Nakamoto evokes an old-time ambience by having most of the actors deliver their lines in the stilted, formal style of old-time Japanese melodramas, and by having much of the movement choreographed by Onoe Kikunobu and Onoe Kikunobukazu, of the Onoe Kikunobu Dance Company. Sun Min Chun's beautifully nuanced, fluidly choreographed performance as the obake is so convincingly feline it is almost guaranteed to make your hair stand on end.
Dan Gelbman's set includes a subtle visual hint of the horrors in store, and sound and lighting have rarely been integrated more effectively by any local theater group than BullDog (lighting) and Keith Kashiwada (sound) do here (Kikunobukazu and director Nakamoto share credit for the instrumental selections that add to the cultural milieu). It is indeed a shame that Kumu Kahua refuses to participate in the Hawaii State Theatre Council's Po'okela Awards, because almost everyone involved with "Obake" is doing Po'okela-worthy work.
Start with Marcus Robert Oshiro, who dominates the show as Tamotsu, a brutal and frustrated misfit who abuses his young and docile wife, Kazue (Sun Min Chun), while lusting after the sluttish and materialistic Shizue (Nani Morita). Oshiro brings this stock villain to life in fine style, complete with the bellicose speaking style expected of such types, and maintains the malevolent shadings of the character even when working through the monologues that inform the audience of why Tamotsu is so bitter and apparently incapable of love.
Oshiro's success in suddenly switching to a cowering victim of the vengeful, sexually violent obake reveals his broader capabilities as an actor and becomes the key to conveying the full horror of Tamotsu's fate.
Chun likewise delivers an impressive performance. Her physical portrayal of an old-country Japanese woman of a century ago is perfect; her transformation into the ghostly cat is one of the most memorable moments in local theater; and her work thereafter is spine-chilling. Chun's use of sinister, catlike movements is particularly effective. To see her silently appear out of the darkness, hands thrust out in a hideous approximation of a cat's paws, is surprisingly scary.
Shawn Thomsen (Hitoshi) and Jodie Yamada (Toshi) work in tandem to provide welcome comic relief as Tamotsu's bumbling sidekick and the sidekick's no-nonsense, obake- fearing wife. Toshi dominates her hapless husband and speaks disparagingly of his small "sword" and inept technique while sharing girl talk with Kazue, but nonetheless lives in fear of Hitoshi's mother's ghost.
Nani Morita (Shizue) completes the cast, playing a woman of uncertain virtue who may or may not have been trained as a geisha and who may or may not be ready to sell herself to the highest bidder. Morita delivers most of her lines in traditional style and succeeds in keeping Shizue from ever becoming sympathetic.
Morita contributes to the comic side of the story as well. A scene in which Shizue stops by Tamotsu's home to taunt Kazue, then becomes involved in a verbal cat fight with Toshi, is beautifully played by all three women.
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