Learning to trust: Improv at Laughtrack Theater

by Doyle Moeller

doyle moeller / KA LAMAKUA

What was your graduation experience? Given the prompt "graduation" the improv troupe Muslin Hamster began with monologues of their own experiences. Co-Owner Shannon Winpenny explains that she dyed her hair bright red so that her mother could see her. The theater takes pride in never performing the same skit twice, so expect to see a wide variety of skits when you visit.

Hidden in the heart of downtown, directly across from Hawaii Theatre and among the optometrists and the cafés is Laughtrack Theater, a welcome break from the predictable. 

doyle moeller / KA LAMAKUA

Observe: the power of the power tie. Muslin Hamster members
Shannon Winpenny and Scott Hanada act out a scene in which
Shannon goes from doubting Scott's ability to get a promotion
to being overcome with desire for him because he is wearing not
just any power tie, but one that Donald Trump himself wore.

The lobby, featuring a wall painted with a group portrait of its founding members, is visible from the street. Beyond that wall, the theatre beings to take shape. The set is minimal, with the only props usually being a pair of stools. The stage, as well as the space, is small, but co-owner Kim Potter says it can seat up to sixty-five.

Once the show begins, it becomes clear why everything else is toned down: the actors provide the color and excitement. Muslin Hamster, one of the many groups performing at Laughtrack, works without any signals or cues, relying instead upon each other's ideas and trusting each other to support their ideas."

For learners, Laughtrack offers classes for all ages, with students ranging in age from eleven to eighty-three. Advanced classes often become performers for the theatre, and even people who want to learn a new skill or just have some fun are welcome.

"Our classes are for anyone who wants to try anything," says Laughtrack co-owner Shannon Winpenny. When she says anything, she literally means anything can happen: she explained that most, if not all long-form improvs start with an “idea generator” in which actors get a chance to feel out whatever subject the audience shouts out. 

In one performance, the prompt offered to the group was "graduation," so each member gave a short monologue about their graduation experience while elements from the monologues found their way into the scenes in interesting and unexpected ways, like a Nintendo DS played during graduation turning into playing Tetris on a wedding day, complete with a Lithuanian bride who enjoys the Russian music.

doyle moeller / KA LAMAKUA

How can you keep a straight face when you're so happy? After a solemn walk down the "aisle" Muslin Hamster members Larissa Nielson, Shannon Winpenny, and Scott Hanada break the guise and express their joy at graduaiton.

Larissa Nielson, another UHM graduate and the second regular member of Muslin Hamster, says the thing she learned most from improv has nothing to do with theatre - she says she learned how to accept herself. To her and to many others at Laughtrack, that's what makes improv so awesome.

"In this house," says Muslin Hamster member and UHM graduate Scott Hanada, "it's all about love and support."

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Laughtrack Theater - located at 1123 Bethel St. - holds shows every Friday and Saturday, at 8:00 and 10:00 p.m. Admission is $10 at the door, and the theatre offers a 20 percent military and student discount. Outside food and drink are welcome, though ID's are checked for those bringing alcohol. For more information or tickets, call (808) 384-3362 or visit http://www.laughtracktheater.com/. 

The Tea Farm

by Jessie Bristow

jessie bristow / KA LAMAKUA 

The remnants of the Jasmine Dragon Pearl Green Tea. 

Half the fun is seeing what teas you like the most.

Step into the small elegance of a quaint, clean, and soothing atmosphere and learn to relax.

Not your typically rush filled café or coffee shop with clerks screaming out your order and lines filled with frustrated beings who are having withdrawals from caffeine and are looking to get their next fix. No hardcore drug dealers in these parts, but just a man who has got what you are looking for, and a place to embrace while you consume.

There has been recent news of the Tea Farm: yes it was opened by a UH alumni, yes it is just down the street, but why should we trade in our beloved addiction of lattes, frappuccinos, steamed, whipped, iced, heart racing, blood pumping coffee?

The answer is… you don't really have to. It is probably for the better that we put down the milk diluted sugar stuffed beverage for once and embrace the culture and tradition of drinking tea, just for health reasons alone. Don't count tea out, it's not over until the fat lady sings, and in this case the fat lady may be considering switching to tea over the quadruple shot syrup added creamy vente that is contributing to her future type two diabetes and obesity.

The Tea Farm Café's environment and style are what attracts people. For those who have grown up on Lipton and Snapple as being the furthest extent of your tea drinking experience, broaden your horizons by taking some time to gander at the selection of about 60 different teas to choose from. Each one has its own origin, scent, and appearance. Trying a few is the fun part of this little establishment, order a cup of Jasmine Dragon Pearl Green Tea and watch the leaves slowly unfold as the flavor consumes the rest of the cup. The shop is small, comfortable, clean, and it is down to earth. The hardwood floors, modern furniture, and little sofa make it a place to just take a breath and slow down.

The idea of a calm place to drink tea where the drug-addicted folk that wake up early and try to run America don't bother you with their daily dosage is a double-edged sword. The size and tranquility of The Tea Farm Café is what draws in its poetic clientele. But as soon as you start expanding café size, become more popular, and adjust to the capitalistic market to fit in more consumers, you drive out the originality of your basis idea of having a great place to get away from the rush. 

Luckily, the Tea Farm is attracting the kind of customers who take the time out of their busy day to sit and enjoy their tea instead of the people who choose a more direct injection of caffeine.

Debris from Japan’s tsunami predicted to hit Hawaii shores

by Maria Kanai

courtesy U.S. Navy/Specialist 3rd Class Dylan McCord

Tsunami debris from Japan floating on the ocean and making its way to Hawaii.

According to Jan Hafner, scientific computer programmer at the International Pacific Research Center, debris from last month's tsunami in Japan is expected to hit the shores of Hawaii in about two years.

Destroyed remnants of Japan's coastal towns such as cars, wood, construction material, houses and roof tops are moving across the Pacific Ocean riding powerful currents, such as the Kuroshio, which flows at one meter a second. At the moment, the debris has moved already a few hundred miles off the coast of Japan and is floating to America.

Based off a diagnostic model by UH scientists, the debris will reach Hawaii in two years. By then, the debris would turn into a "North Pacific garbage patch", which will piece away and continue to filter to Hawaii shores for about five more years. At the moment, the garbage patch is the size of Texas or even bigger.

In regards to this prediction, a project is being planned by Nikolai Maximenko to start tracking debris by placing transmitters on pieces from the tsunami. Gisela Speidel, who also works at the International Pacific Research Center, says, "It [the project] will help to determine where the different objects travel and how quickly and how they break apart. Such tracking will help government agencies to implement strategies to deal with the debris."

When asked what students at UH Manoa can do to help, Spiedel says, "Let us prevent trash from getting into the ocean in the first place. When at the beach, or boating, every one of us should make sure our trash is not left on the sand or thrown into the water…clean-up days by different community groups and schools are very important to deal with the immediate problem on hand."

Japan's tsunami has had a worldwide impact, and Hawaii is not an exception. However, Speidel hopes that this incident may possibly turn out for good.

"Our oceans were becoming more and more polluted already before the tsunami, perhaps the current disaster help to will bring governments and industries that contribute to marine debris together to begin to deal with the ever growing problem of garbage in our oceans."

Vengeful Sword brings Kabuki to UH

by Doyle Moeller

courtesy KENNEDY THEATRE

Meg Thiel as Manno (the conniving teahouse madam) and James Schirmer as Fukuoka Mitsugi (the dutiful samurai) in the Kabuki production of "The Vengeful Sword" at UHM's Kennedy Theatrer. 

courtesy KENNEDY THEATRE

A night at a Kabuki show is the epitome of Japanese class, a celebration of culture, history, and tradition. Usually based on a historical event, Kabuki is a highly stylized form of theatre sometimes referred to as ‘avant garde’ or bizarre, the slow speech and plot development can sometimes leave some viewers wondering when it will end.

Regardless of what you think of Kabuki, Hawai’i is the only place outside of Japan to lay claim to a Kabuki tradition. Troupes first came to the islands to entertain migrant workers in 1893, and the University of Hawai’i has been producing Kabuki since 1924.

The Vengeful Sword (or in the original Japanese: Ise Ondo Koi no Netaba) is built around a fateful night in a teahouse in Furuichi, specifically the Abura Teahouse. on a summer night in 1796, a possibly intoxicated, and certainly jealous Magofuku Itsuki (name changed to Fukuoka Mitsugi in the play) pulled his sword in the teahouse, killing three and injuring six.

courtesy KENNEDY THEATRE

James Schirmer (top) plays Fukuoka Mitsugi while Murray Husted (below) plays the role of his rival, Aidamiya Kitaroku in the UHM Kennedy Theatre production of "The Vengeful Sword."

Director Julie A. Iezzi sought to recreate the atmosphere of a Japanese Kabuki performance, with “audience hawkers” (listed as such in the cast list) selling Tenugui (towels with wood block prints) and Chirashi (prints on broadsheet) in the hose before the start of the show, with proceeds from their sales going to the Red Cross Fund for Japan Relief. These hawkers, in addition to selling their wares, held conversations for the benefit of the audience and performed short skits. 

Once the actual show starts, and first-timers get used to the stylistic, rhythmic speech which includes speaking to a slow beat and with great variation in pitch and tone, it reveals a simple but well told story of a family heirloom, a few compelling characters, and even a few surprises foreshadowed by a close inspection of the show’s program.

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Catch the Vengeful Swordat Kennedy Theatre on April  21, 22 and 23 at 8pm, and April 24 at 2pm. For tickets or more information, call the Kennedy Theatre ticket office at 956-7655 or visit their website at http://www.hawaii.edu/theatre/.

Eat The Street For Japan

by Maria Kanai
photos by Rie Miyoshi

Last week my photographer Rie Miyoshi and I attended the third Eat The Street, a lunch wagon rally event organized by Poni Askew of Streetgrindz.com. This month, the event was for a cause. In light of the terrible earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan, the lunch wagons donated either a portion or all of their proceeds to the American Red Cross to aid relief efforts. It was an awesome way for people to help out a recovering country while enjoying some delicious street food. Here's how it went!

There were some changes from the last ETS in February. First of all, it was even bigger! 32 lunch wagons instead of last month's 26. Trash cans were set up in the middle, tables were set up for easy eating, and the lines actually were fairly short…except for Gogi's Korean Tacos truck! As usual, this was a crowd favorite.

This was another thing that was different! Local artists Lightsleepers worked on a beautiful, Japan-themed painting on twelve canvases that were to be auctioned off, the money once again being donated to the American Red Cross.

The first truck we went to was Shogunai Tacos. Most of the lunch trucks had a Japan-themed dish, and I got Shogunai's Osaka Jo. It was delicious, with the perfect fusion of Mexican and Japanese. The ginger pork was flavored nicely with the shoyu and lemon, and I loved the furikake and bean sprouts. It was actually really filling at $6.50, and my friend and I split one between the two of us.

The biggest surprise of the night? The line at Melt was actually manageable, and I got to try out their famous sandwiches for the first time! I think the lines were short because of their limited menu; Japanese beef curry, their famous tomato soup, and just one Melt sandwich, which was a Kabocha and Bacon melt.

You can see the kabocha (pumpkin) covered with delicious Gouda cheese. The bread was perfectly toasted with a nice crunch, and the cheese, well, was melting in my mouth. It certainly lived up to its hype. However, I did think $9 was a little pricey...

Then I ran into Poni Askew herself! Although she was busy running around organizing everything, she was able to take some time to answer some question. She let me know that she plans on holding these events at the last Friday of every month. As for the changes, she is going to take them slow. "We want to ease into the momentum, and not change too much at once."

We wanted something sweet, and we had loved the icecream at Aloha Ice Cream Tricycle. We got the watermelon icecream this time, for $4. Once again, the cookie crust at the bottom did it for me. I'm usually not a big fruit-flavored-icecream fan, but there were "chocolate" seeds for my chocolate fix.

SOUL Patrol's very own Chef Sean Priester! They were cooking food right outside the truck. SOUL's Japan themed dish was togarashi-spiced catfish with Japanese cucumber relish.

We got the Mexican paella for $7 at Camille's on Wheels, just to take a break from the tacos. The rice was filled with plenty of shrimp, chicken, and shichimi! It was just the right amount of spicy, and the different meats and seafoods were perfectly flavored.

Me and Onopops' Mexican Chocolate. It had an interesting tangy flavor to it that I wasn't quite used to. The chocolate is grown in Hawaii, and I bought the popsicle for $3. I just wasn't used to the strong aftertaste, kind of bitter and very thick, so this wasn't my favorite, even though I look very happy.

Over $7200 was raised for Japan, from a combination of food sales from the lunch wagons and separate donations. Once again, this was the biggest Eat The Street yet. At least 3500 people showed up to eat and participate to help a nation in need, making it an unforgettable night. Keep a lookout for the next event, which is planned to be held on the last Friday of April!