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Hawaii Dave Donnelly |
The past is a present
for Tom MoffattIT was quite a day for promoter Tom Moffatt. He'd just got word that his Dec. 12 evening with singer Neil Sedaka was sold out, and he opened sales for Sedaka's show Dec. 11 at the Maui Arts & Cultural Center. So if you just have to see Sedaka, go to Maui. Moffatt then picked up an old Punahou newspaper from 1974 which somebody had sent him containing a large story on Elton John, who he was bringing to town. Nice article, he thought and then noticed the name of the reporter who'd interviewed him. It was written by AOL founder Steve Case when he was a student at Punahou. Moffatt then stopped into the nearby I Love Country Kitchen. And who was sitting there over his country kau kau but The Rock, otherwise known locally as Dwayne Johnson ...
DRIVING by the sign listing upcoming shows outside the Blaisdell Arena, I noted that Moffatt may have a new competitor. The sign read "David Gest Presents." Yep, Liza's former husband, supposedly doing rehab in Hawaii, has in fact been lining up a New Year's Eve show he's promoting. It's a Doobie Brothers reunion, but the bill hardly stops there. Also performing at the $150 per pop concert are Michael McDonald, Gloria Gaynor, Isaac Hayes (we're talkin' about Shaft), Martha & the Vandellas and Candy Staton. Moffatt could really take the wind out of Gest's sails if he were to book Liza Minelli somewhere that same night ...
UH going X-rated?
OPENING night is "drag night," though audience cross-dressing isn't mandatory, at the East West Center's Ernst Theatre, for "Masked Balls: a story of sex, lies, and measuring tape," on Nov. 19. The play is inspired by the real life story of a French 18th century cross-dresser and considered a provocative, witty look at sex and gender from playwright Hilary Wright and director Jennifer Goodlander, the same team that produced "Hysterical: A Short History of the Vibrator." ... And while "Masked Balls" can be found at the lab theater, the main stage at Kennedy Theatre is preparing for a Dec. 5 premiere of John Ford's "'Tis Pity She's a Whore." Since there is sexual intrigue and nudity in the show, viewer discretion is advised. "Whore" plays through Dec. 14 ...AND we're told there's some sexy stuff in Manoa Valley Theatre's next production, "Apartment 3A," opening Nov. 19. For starters, the public television exec at the center of the plot has 10 simulated orgasms during the production. Welcome to the 21st century ... Not all plays are sex-fests. TAG, the Actors' Group, opens a four-week run of Richard Goodwin's play about Japan, "Ten Million Reawakenings," tonight at the Yellow Brick Studio ...
Oh, Joy
THE holiday fair at Hanahau'oli School in Makiki, called "Oh, joy," and was such a success that's what co-chairs Kara Obana, Lisa Shozuya and Bev Lum were saying about it afterwards. They were thrilled to see hundreds of families turn out. Pony rides proved so popular that four steeds were pressed into service this year. Headmaster Robert Peters also got into the swing of things, throwing snowballs at the Snowman Booth ...
See the Columnists section for some past articles.
Dave Donnelly has been writing on happenings in Hawaii for the Star-Bulletin since 1968. The Week That Was runs Sundays and recalls items from Dave's 30 years of columns. Contact Dave by e-mail: ddonnelly@starbulletin.com
