Singer Raiatea Helm will stage what looks to be the season’s most luxurious Mother’s Day brunch May 10 at the Royal Hawaiian’s Monarch Room.
Fresh from her recent gig with Robert Cazimero at the Hawaii Theatre, Helm — a previous Na Hoku Hanohano Award winner — will take the stage at 11 a.m. with three tiers of seating choices/prices: VIP for $175, which includes a glass ofDom Perignon, with seating from 9:45 a.m.; stage view, from 10:15 a.m. ($125); and patio seating, from 10:45 a.m. ($95). All offer discounts for kids.
Helm will be joined by Makana, the singer-guitarist; Miss Aloha Hula 2014 Ke‘alohilani Serrao, from last year’s Merrie Monarch Festival; and DeAndre Kamele Brackensick, an uke-strumming singer-hula dancer with San Diego roots and drop-dead model looks who was an "American Idol" finalist.Reservations: royal-hawaiian.com/dining/mothers-day or call921-4600. …
HERO HOMECOMING: Masi Oka, who played Hiro Nakamura on the old NBC series "Heroes," will guest on a new 13-episode "Heroes Reborn" miniseries this fall. The peacock network is tapping some original stars including Jack Coleman and Oka, but not Zachary Quinto. A string of newbies will star in the reboot.
Oka, of course, is completing his fourth season (he joined the cast in Season 2) as coroner Max Bergman in the island-filmed CBS procedural "Hawaii Five-0," which is winding up its fifth season while awaiting word about a sixth. …
AROUND TOWN: Good luck on scoring tickets to Diamond Head Theatre’s "South Pacific," where Loretta Ables Sayre is re-creating her Tony-nominated Bloody Mary role and doubling as co-director with John Rampage. She deserves the top billing in this one, to which she brought the wisdom and wonderment learned when she starred in the reboot role at Lincoln Center’s Vivian Beaumont Theatre. While DHT does not have a thrust stage like the Beaumont, Ables Sayre has helped refine and define the vision of her Broadway director Bartlett Sher. She’s assembled a resourceful ensemble ofactors-dancers and notably gives her Nellie Forbush (Erin Winker Fasone) and Luther Billis (Zack Oldham) ample space and rope to glow and grow in their roles. For a first-time director, Ables Sayre does herself proud, and DHT is blessed to have her aboard since she first starred in "You Somebody," which created buzz that led to her richly crafted Bloody Mary, the modern-day standard of the character. …
Something wicked comes to the Hawai‘i Symphony Orchestra when "Wicked Divas" is staged at 8 p.m. Saturday at Blaisdell Concert Hall.The program features Nicole Parker (Elphaba) andLaura Woyaz (Glinda) from the Broadway musical "Wicked," sharing highlights from the Tony-winning show. Sarah Hicks conducts the orchestra. Tunes from "Gypsy," "Ragtime," "Titanic" and "Carmen" complete the menu. Tickets: $27 to $79, at the Blaisdell box office. …
NAMES ‘N’ FACES: That was Neil Sedaka dining at Seafood Village at the Hyatt Regency Waikiki, celebrating with his family following his March 28 concert at the Blaisdell Concert Hall. Sedaka is the prolific composer of such classic pop hits as "Calendar Girl" and "Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen" …
With Fox’s "American Idol" competish under way, Jordan Segundo, Hawaii’s first "American Idol" contestant from Season 2,continues his post-show commentaries on KHON2’s "Wake Up 2day Show." His "Idol Chat" segment airs at 7:45 a.m. Wednesdays, with a follow-up appearance at 8:30 a.m. Thursdays on the station’s "Living 808 Show." Segundo shares views on "Idol" contestants, judges and alumni. Hey, Jordan: What ever happened to Jasmine Trias? …
And that’s "Show Biz." …
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Wayne Harada is a veteran entertainment columnist; reach him at 266-0926 or wayneharada@gmail.com; read his Show and Tell Hawaii blog at www.staradvertiser.com.
