KUMU KAHUA THEATRE Keith Kashiwada tries to show off what roping skills he learned watching Roy Rogers on TV in a scene from "David Carradine Not Chinese."

Lum unveils
racial farce

Kumu Kahua premieres next week a newly commissioned work by writer-playwright Darrell H.Y. Lum titled "David Carradine Not Chinese."

Lum focuses on a local Chinese family as it takes a comic journey through contemporary Hawaii and American media. Pit stops include Charlie Chan movies, "Hawaii Five-O" and "Kung Fu," which starred Carradine as a Chinese Shaolin priest. Comic book superheroes, the Lawrence Welk and Ed Sullivan TV variety shows, and TV cowboy icons Roy Rogers and Dale Evans also figure into this.

KUMU KAHUA THEATRE Kumu Kahua Theatre's new production, "David Carradine Not Chinese," begins Thursday.

It's a tale of convoluted racial stereotypes, filled with local attitudes and pun-ridden dialogue, culminating in a hilarious evening at the Wat-Chu Society annual banquet.

The cast, directed by John H.Y. Wat, features company veterans Alvin Chan, Keith Kashiwada, Rodney Kwock, Alissa Joy Lee, and newcomers Tristan Hiraishi and Brent Yoshikami.

Place: Kumu Kahua Theatre, 46 Merchant St.

Time: 8 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays, and 2 p.m. Sundays, through Feb. 5

Tickets: $5 to $16

Call: 536-4441