A modern take on “Eurydice” hits the stage at HPU

FRIDAY-THURSDAY

>> Locally-produced film makes it debut

“Running for Grace,” a feature film set in Hawaii during the 1920s, gets an early screening this week at Regal Dole Cannery.

The coming-of-age romantic drama tells the story of Jo (Ryan Potter, “Senior Project”), an orphan hapa-haole who lives amid the coffee plantations in Kona. He is spurned by both whites and non-whites, but is taken under the wing of the plantation’s new doctor (Matt Dillon, “There’s Something about Mary,” “Crash”), who mentors him and employs him as a runner bringing medicine to workers in the fields. Also starring is Jim Caviezel (“Person of Interest,” “The Passion of Christ”).

The film was shot and produced entirely in Hawaii. It was directed by filmmaker David Cunningham, who is known for the ABC miniseries “Path to 9/11” and the feature film “To End All Wars.”

Cunningham founded a film studio in Kona, Honua Studios, with the intention of tapping island talent and resources.

“We believe that we have the talent, the locations and the proximity to do so,” Cunningham told scenesmedia.com. “This is the first film coming out of our shop to demonstrate that. We wanted to show people that Hawaii is more than just a location for pretty beaches and jungles.”

The movie also premieres this week at Regal Makalapua in Kona, the Hilo Palace Theatre and Kukui Grove Cinema on Kauai.

FRIDAY-JULY 29

>> A modern take on “Eurydice” hits the stage at HPU

Ancient Greek mythology has many stories about the musician Orpheus. One of the best known tells how the gods were so moved by the music he played in mourning the death of his bride-to-be, Eurydice, that he was allowed to bring her back from the land of dead — but on condition that he walk in front of her and not look back until they both reached the land of the living.

While you might already know or can easily guess the end of the story, you might still be enchanted by acclaimed playwright Sarah Ruhl’s rewrite of “Eurydice.” It retells the story from the perspective of Eurydice, making it about her freedom to choose to return with Orpheus or remain in the underworld with her father — a character Ruhl added as a way of paying tribute to her own father.

Written in 2004, the play came to New York in 2007 to rave reviews. “‘Eurydice’ movingly suggests that commemorating life, its pleasures and problems, its transience and pain, is the only way to triumph over death and loss,” wrote the New York Times, which called the play “weird and wonderful.”

All the World’s a Stage Theatre Company presents “Eurydice” as part of its residency at Hawaii Pacific University. Rachael Uyeno stars in the title role, with Jeff Brackett as Orpheus and Paul T. Mitri as the father.

As a footnote: The show is the last chance for island audiences to see Brackett and Uyeno, pictured, on the local stage. They’re on their way to New York in August.

— John Berger, Star-Advertiser

SUNDAY-MONDAY

>> Song composer Karla Bonoff performs at the Blue Note

The great Linda Ronstadt sang some of the most heartfelt, touching songs of the 1970s and 1980s, but due to Parkinson’s disease, she is no longer able to sing.

So who better to turn to than the actual composer of several of those songs, Karla Bonoff, who wrote the tunes “Someone to Lay Down Beside Me,” “If He’s Ever Near” and “Lose Again,” all heard on Ronstadt’s classic “Hasten Down the Wind” album, as well as songs performed by artists like Bonnie Raitt (“I Can’t Hold On” and “Home”) and Winona Judd (No. 1 country hit “Tell Me Why”).

Bonoff, who appears for two nights at Blue Note Hawaii this week, was an integral but ultimately underappreciated member of the 1970s Southern California rock scene, hanging out at the famed Troubadour club, playing with a short-lived group called Bryndle and then opening for Jackson Browne and James Taylor.

Though she produced four well-received albums during that period, including “Restless Nights,” which reached No. 31 on the Billboard rock charts, she didn’t break into the big time on her own. She attributes that partly to her reluctance to follow the trends of the era and also because she professes to be a “really, really slow writer,” as she told the San Jose Mercury News.

Nonetheless, Bonoff continued to perform, especially in Japan, where she developed and maintained a strong fan base. Her voice, criticized as somewhat unsteady back then (what can one expect when Linda Ronstadt is singing your stuff?) now seems perfect for her warmly sentimental songs. Expect some good stories from back in the day, too.

WEDNESDAY-THURSDAY

>> Bands on stage, animals entertain at Waikiki events

Enjoy some critters along with your favorite crooners at two Waikiki events this week.

On Wednesday, the Honolulu Zoo presents the Makaha Sons as part of its “Wildest Show in Town” concert series. Jerome Koko, an original member, continues the tradition of sweet, soulful songs, with the help of new members Mark Yim on guitar and Kimo Artis on bass. In its heyday, the group performed at Carnegie Hall and in Washington, D.C., and appeared on national television broadcasts.

On Thursday, the Waikiki Aquarium holds the latest in its Ke Kani o ke Kai summer concert series, featuring a trio of some of the island’s most innovative performers: the multitalented John Cruz, creator of the Billboard-charting album “One of These Days”; Hapa, with original performers Barry Flanagan and Keli‘i Kaneali‘i, who reunited earlier this year to perform some of their hits from the ‘90s; and the eclectic, eccentric band Streetlight Cadence, pictured, who went from busking on the streets of Waikiki and Chinatown to performing in Hollywood and Disneyland in Southern California.

Both facilities will have extended hours so visitors can visit with the animals before the music. At the zoo, enjoy activities like animal trivia games and drawings for an ukulele. Aquarium concertgoers are encouraged to bring blankets and chairs to set on the lawn.