BRAD GODA PHOTO / KUMU KAHUA Ron Encarnacion plays Bully, a delivery person who has a bad back, providing one of the few highlights to"Half Dozen Long Stem."

Play’s subtle wit lost
with bland characters

Is "Half Dozen Long Stem" intended to be a comedy? A farce? A comedy-drama? There are some poignant moments amidst the sitcom-style action in Kumu Kahua's world-premiere production of Lee Cataluna's latest play, but none of the characters are engaging enough to justify an emotional investment in the fate of sour old Mrs. Fujiuchi's flower shop.

"Half Dozen Long Stem" Presented by Kumu Kahua. Continues at 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday through Dec. 5 (no show on Thanksgiving). Tickets are $5 to $16. Call 536-4441.

Are we supposed to be laughing with the characters or at them? Sympathize with their predicaments, or observe them as one might watch the behavior of cockroaches or lab rats?

That said, the fact that this is a new Cataluna play should suffice to sell tickets even though "Half Dozen Long Stem" is significantly different from some of her earlier work. There is no toilet humor, no stereotypical "haole" villains and little reliance on ethnic stereotypes of any type. Several characters are pidgin speakers but they're of no specific ethnicity. Since Mrs. Fujiuchi acquired her surname by marriage, there's no reason to automatically make assumptions about her ethnicity, either.

The story also contains sugar-coated messages about the importance of not trying too hard to impress people, and the danger of carrying a grudge too long. A character's comment that it can be better to send someone six roses instead of a dozen is likely to resonate with some men, although it is not a sentiment likely to find favor with Hawaii's florists.

Norman Muñoz establishes himself as the show's comic spark plug with his portrayal of Romell, the flower shop's flamboyant floral designer, a guy with a penchant for creating unconventional arrangements when he isn't being pressed into service as a delivery man. The character is the most stereotypical in the show, but the role is the liveliest and most over-the-top as well, and Muñoz develops it to great comic effect. That's good, because Romell becomes the linchpin to the laid-back story line that makes "Half Dozen Long Stem" more than just another collection of character sketches in the style of last year's Cataluna play, "Folks You Meet in Longs."

The premise is simple: Mrs. Fujiuchi discovers that her deceased ex-husband has left his half-ownership of the flower shop to his second wife, Roslyn, the "younger woman" he left her for some years before. Roslyn shows up at the store oblivious to the older woman's bitterness and is soon innocently suggesting ways to increase business by stocking popular peripheral items like Mylar balloons, stuffed animals and greeting cards.

It seems all Mrs. Fujiuchi wants to sell is flowers, even though she doesn't seem to enjoy it much. With Roslyn now in the picture, she decides it's time to close the store and retire.

One of the employees, Nornette, who seems to find the shop a welcome refuge from the world, convinces Mrs. Fujiuchi to postpone closing the shop long enough to do her wedding flowers. The problem is, Nornette doesn't even have a steady date, let alone a fiance, and she turns to Romell to help her maintain the illusion of pending nuptials to keep the shop open. Romell eventually enlists another employee, Billy, a lazy and dim-witted delivery man who avoids work by claiming to have a bad back.

How long will Nornette be able to trick Mrs. Fujiuchi?

Cataluna, who has featured broad and simple "local comedy" in some previous plays, shows more sophistication here. Unfortunately, much of her cleverest work is likely to be overlooked. For instance, scene changes are accompanied by real-life disc jockey "Sister Sherry" Clifton's pre-recorded dedications, commercials and conversations with people we hear calling fictional local radio station KWUV. The fictional call letters play off a one-liner elsewhere in the show, and the content of some of the dedications also shows Cataluna's ability to write subtle comic material.

It should also be noted that director R. Kevin Doyle not only has the actors make the "ding-ding" noise of the bell whenever they enter or leave through the front door, but he also has them vary the tone of the "bell" in keeping with the character's emotional state.

Cataluna fans who don't catch the subtlety of the radio spots and the "bell" will doubtless enjoy the many ways Romell finds to mispronounce "Fujiuchi."

Danel Verdugo makes an appealing comic heroine even though Nornette's plight never becomes tangible. Aito Steele (Bertram) displays impressive range in making a believable transition from buffoonish "playa" to awkward everyman when the emphasis of the story shifts from comedy to parable in Act 2.

Ron Encarnacion (Bully) contributes good characterization to several broad comic moments with his portrayal of the loutish, work-shy drone. Charlene Dias (Mrs. Fujiuchi) labors in the role of a crabby old grouch, and Karen Hironaga (Roslyn Fujiuchi) manages to be abrasive and obnoxious in playing the designated villain.

Local celebrities -- and friends of the cast -- take note: There's a "fill in the name" bit in Act 2 about the suspected sexual preference of one of the flower shop customers, and Muñoz and Verdugo have free reign each night in deciding whose name to use.