Hawaii Tribune-Herald Island Beat Thursday, November 10, 2016 9 GHOSTS From page 7 come see the production, but her attendance had not been confirmed at press time. What some might see only as history, Johnson views as a relevant topic for today’s world issues. “I was surprised to find out how many families here on the Big Island have relatives still in those areas,” Johnson says. “They have an awareness of what their ancestors went through, and the health issues are still affecting families generations later. They live with this every day even though it happened so long ago.” “Ghosts of Hiroshima” is scheduled for a one-weekend run at the UH-Hilo Performing Arts Center at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 17-19 with a matinee performance at 2 p.m. Nov. 20. The audience at the final matinee is invited to participate in a discussion session following the performance with actors, artistic staff and contributing faculty in the Performing Arts Department. “Rather than update the play to reflect today’s nuclear situation, I kept it in the time frame of the ’80s because it had more immediacy,” says Johnson, who directs the play. “But there is a balance between sharing in the tragedy of what happened and trying to find some kind of hope and resolution for the survivors.” “Ghosts of Hiroshima” features an ensemble of actors, guided by two storytellers who give context and reflection to the facts surrounding the bombing and painful aftermath. The production combines theatrical conventions of movement, dance and masks with images, words, science and poetry to allow history and nuclear issues to be considered in a new way. “I truly believe no one realized the extent of what would happen (with the bombings),” Johnson says. “I know people say ‘war is war,’ but we have since learned if people start using this as a way to confront and tame each other, our world will be devastated.” Actors Joann Hale, Bridge Hartman, Bryce Johnston, John Kooistra, Keali‘iahonui Kauikahi, Angela Nakamura, Rhealiza Pira, Irie Taniguchi, Bernard-Benjamin Villa, and Leah Wilson, help “frame each artistic element to deal with the intense story in a manner that allows for reflection and thoughtful response,” Johnson explains. She envisioned elements of dance choreographed by instructor Celeste Staton for members of the UH-Hilo Dance Ensemble, who are accompanied by taiko drummers Lei Kaniumoe Shinoda and Chad Nakagawa of Taishoji Taiko. Art professor Michael Marshall, who also is the chairman of the Art and Performing Arts Department, worked to create masks that bring an interpretive element to the survivors’ images, to help the audience wade through the flashback and storytelling sequences, Johnson says. Then you have the stark backdrop of the story, which is shaped by resident designer Ariana Bassett. Visuals from the bombing and aftermath depict what life was like when the U.S. dropped an atomic bomb (nicknamed “Little Boy”) on Hiroshima, whose acute effects killed approximately 146,000 people. Three days later, the U.S. dropped the bomb “Fat Man” on the area of Nagasaki, which killed approximately 80,000 people. UH faculty participating in the Sunday matinee discussion include Japanese studies professor Masafumi Honda and professor of communications Catherine Becker, who was the one who brought Johnson the script originally. This will be the first stage production for Taguchi, a UH-Hilo student who was raised on a tiny island in Japan. “I thought I could express something that I know,” she says. “I’ve been to Iwo Jima before, which was a battlefield in WWII. I wanted to tell people in Hawaii what I saw there.” Taguchi, who portrays bombing survivor Miss Shibama, says she feels in Japan, they don’t teach what really happened in the school classrooms. “I feel it’s my obligation to pass the information to the younger generation. It’s hard to see people suffering, but after I read this whole play I felt like I learned something.” One of the two storytellers in the play is portrayed by Kooistra, a community actor who is turning 80. “This play is different than anything I’ve done before,” says Kooistra, who has appeared in 23 Shakespeare productions through the years here in Hilo. “Shakespeare plays are tragedies, too, and can be heavy, but ‘Ghosts of Hiroshima’ is more immediate to what’s going on in the world now and the unthinkability of nuclear war.” Kooistra says audiences will not be “entertained” in the traditional sense of the word, but that people should come to this play to be alerted to the dangers that still exist today. “It’s a funny thing to say, to urge people to go to a play that’s not going to be fun,” Kooistra says. “Even Shakespeare tragedies are fun to watch. But here, the heroes are the survivors of the bomb attack. There’s some moving stuff in there. I think it’s important to come to be enlightened and educated. There are still countries with nuclear armaments. Lurking in the background is a huge arsenal of nuclear weaponry. I think people should be more aware of that.” Tickets are open seating. General admission is $12, $10 discount and $5 UH-Hilo and Hawaii Community College students with a valid student ID and for children 17 and under. Call the UH-Hilo box office from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Tuesday through Friday at 932-7490 or order online at artscenter.uhh. hawaii.edu. “Ghosts of Hiroshima” is an “ode to the times and temperaments found in today’s global landscape,” says Johnson. “At the heart of the production is the consideration of the human costs of war. It’s a commitment to the idea that these are not the choices to make. I truly believe it’s still ‘we the people,’ and we have an influence.” ONE GALLERY an artists’ collective Art & Wine Classes 961-2787 $35 onegalleryhawaii.com Fri, Mon & Tues - Nov. 11, 14 & 15 at 7pm Sat - Nov. 12 at 2:30pm & 7pm SEED: THE UNTOLD STORY (NR) Documentary Directed by: Taggart Siegel, Jon Betz Few things on Earth are as miraculous and vital as seeds. “SEED: The Untold Story” follows passionate seed keepers protecting our 12,000 year-old food legacy. In the last century, 94% of our seed varieties have disappeared. As biotech chemical companies control the majority of our seeds, seed keepers fight a David and Goliath battle to defend the future of our food. LA Times: “Farming may seem prosaic to the uninitiated, but ʻSEED: The Untold Storyʼ reveals the poetry present in the practice through its smallest element.” $8 Gen. - $7 Student/Senior 38 Haili St. • 934-7777 www.hilopalace.com Lei Kaniumoe Shinoda and Chad Nakagawa rehearse. HOLLYN JOHNSON/ Tribune-Herald
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