In a stirring production that brings its real-life, 19th-century Hawaii characters to vibrant life, “Wild Birds” by Eric Anderson premiered Thursday at Kumu Kahua Theatre. A team triumph, the fine performances that director Harry Wong III draws from an energetic young cast are complemented by beautiful, simple costume, lighting, set and sound design that evokes both historical and contemporary style.
Set in the period of 1839 to 1850, the play opens with the Honolulu arrival of American missionaries Amos and Julia Cooke (Max Holtz and Joanna Mills) to educate Hawaiian children of royal blood at the request of Kamehameha III. Although a teacher, Julia has her doubts.
“We are not qualified,” she tells her cold, rigid, Bible- quoting husband, the conflict between them readily apparent. She cites the wide cultural gap and initially finds the children to be willful and spoiled.
| ‘WILD BIRDS’
>> Where: Kumu Kahua Theatre, 46 Merchant St.
>> When: 8 p.m. Thursdays (except Thanksgiving), Fridays and Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays, through Dec. 3
>> Tickets: $5-$25
>> Info: 536-4441, kumukahua.org
>> Note: Free talk-story session follows Nov. 10 performance; American Sign Language interpreter available upon request for Dec. 3 performance.
PRODUCTION NOTES
“Wild Birds,” written by Eric Anderson, directed by Harry Wong III and Brandon Hagio, costumes by Carlynn Wolfe, set by Bulldog, sound design by Matthew Mazzella, lighting design by Cora Yamagata, hair by Brenda Santos. Cast: Anette Arinix (Abigail Mahoha), James Keawe Bright (William Lunalilo), Max Holtz (Amos Starr Cooke), Lelea’e Kahalepuna-Wong (Bernice Pauahi), Kirk A. Lapilio Jr. (Lot Kamehameha) Dylan Lee (Alexander Liholiho), Joanna Mills (Julia Montague Cooke), Ryan Okinaka (Moses Kekuaiwa).
Running time: 2 hours with intermission.
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On their first day in the New England-style schoolroom, the children (played convincingly by young adults) crash in with ear-splitting shrieks, bantering in Hawaiian. Amos tells them they can speak only English in class and is immediately challenged by Alexander Liholiho (Dylan Lee). Alex and his classmates repeatedly remind the Cookes that Hawaii is theirs, not America’s.
Still, the brilliant young alii love to learn. Wordplay delights them: “hymn” and “him,” the different meanings of “ruler.” Then comes a shock: When the boys get rowdy, Amos beats them with a ruler.
When the young royals study the French Revolution, they root for Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, riff on their hair, then seriously discuss the alii tradition of caring for the common people, although Bernice Pauahi (Lelea‘e Kahalepuna-Wong) points out that they sometimes don’t.
In scenes fetchingly choreographed with movement and dance, Julia sometimes speaks and sings in Hawaiian with the children, irking her husband.
The mood darkens with a devastating measles epidemic, the set reverberating with wailing and coffins being nailed. The play’s climax revolves around the most oppositional student, Moses Kekuaiwa, who tells the missionaries that, like evil kahuna, “You’ve prayed us all to death.”
Despite sober themes of cultural imperialism and white-savior complex, much of the dialogue is funny, spot-on and lyrical, as in a class at night under the stars. “Wild Birds” escapes the didacticism that burdens many historical plays, although repetitive scenes of marital squabbles and Julia’s expressions of guilt go on too long.
Anderson’s “Another Heaven,” performed at Kumu Kahua in 2006, explored the lynching of a Japan-born shopkeeper on the Big Island in 1890. In “Wild Birds,” he again raises issues of motivation and justice, questioning whether a Western education has prepared the students to be leaders in a changing world or whether it has paralyzed them.
“Wild Birds” should be seen. It entertains, stimulates and reminds us that while history may be written by the victors, it’s not over yet.
