Laughing through tears

In an annual show that prides itself on tackling head-on anything or anyone in the news ripe for parody, it’s no surprise that "Gridiron 2010: There’s No Business Like No Business" will comment in skit, song and dance on what’s happened in recent months to some of its cast and organizers as a result of merger-related layoffs.

Nearly 400 employees of the Honolulu Advertiser and Honolulu Star-Bulletin lost their jobs when the two dailies merged earlier this year, and a year ago the consolidation of KGMB, KHNL and KFVE tossed roughly 70 people out on the street.

So besides the usual uproarious takes on issues of the day, politicians and the upcoming election season, expect bits on Star-Advertiser owner David Black, a spotlight on "media monopoly," a post-newspaper/post-apocalyptic view of "A-Hole New World" and a pointed jab at the new kid in town, billionaire Pierre Omidyar’s online Honolulu Civil Beat.

While you won’t find anyone from that news-gathering organization in the show’s cast of 40, every other local news organization from print, TV and radio will be represented. And because many of the participants will be busy covering November’s elections, the Gridiron was moved from its usual fall dates to summer.

The show, which evolved through the past dozen years from a bare-bones production in a cabaret setting to a full-fledged spectacle at the 470-seat Diamond Head Theatre, is nearly always a sell-out. Demand for tickets prompted organizers to offer discounted seats for dress rehearsals. Proceeds from the performances will once again fund student internships and scholarships coordinated by the Hawaii chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.

A couple Saturdays ago at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church parish hall, the cast rehearsed a full run of the show in a strong, united voice. Although he wasn’t there, Gridiron fans will be glad to know that KGMB/KHNL/KFVE morning show weather guy Dan Cooke will be reprising his uncanny caricature of Gov. Linda Lingle, while news promotions producer Kerry Yoshida, from the same stations, will do gubernatorial candidate Neil Abercrombie. Colleague Ben Gutierrez — in stilts — will be hizzoner Mufi Hannemann.

"Putting together this show was definitely different in light of the layoffs," said public relations manager and former TV reporter Garett Kamemoto, a Gridiron Show writer. The script is developed over the course of many months, with material added as important, bizarre and outrageous events occur.

"The original theme of this year’s show was going to be ‘It Could Be Worse,’" said co-artistic director Robbie Dingeman, who was laid off from her reporting job at the now-defunct Advertiser. "When the layoffs started happening, I remember getting e-mails saying that ‘it just got worse."

Although Hawaii’s news crews boast a number of seasoned performers with impressive vocal skills, the Gridiron relies on "ringers" to move the show along on stage, such as veteran stage actress and scene-stealer Cathy Foy, musical director Roslyn Catracchia and island-born director/choreographer Ahnya Chang, now based in New York City.

"I know this sounds corny," said Dingeman, "but this show is a real labor of love. While we’re competitive with each other in our daily work lives, it’s fun to come together to work for a common cause."

KITV news reporter and Gridiron co-artistic director Keoki Kerr, who could easily be mistaken for one of the ringers, said Hawaii is overdue for "a good laugh, especially since what’s happen to us in the media. … Talking to people in the community, it’s been tough overall, so this makes for a nice escape by being creative and even taking a poke at ourselves. It’s been therapeutic."

While some of the costumes and props are on loan from various community theater groups, others are specially made by the volunteer crew of Janelle Saneishi, Norma Hirota and Trish Freitas.

Saneishi, in particular, has been near indispensable for her offstage work, organizers said. Since the Gridiron show’s rebirth in 1998, Saneishi — a former TV news producer and now public information officer for the state Department of Agriculture — has learned, with her cohorts, how to produce a wardrobe on a shoestring budget.

In the show’s early days, Saneishi said, "the only prop that was used was a ballot box, and the cast used to hang signs around their necks to show who they were playing. Now the cast and the caliber of performance amazes me. It makes me even want to do a great job.

"It’s kind of stressful at times," she admitted. "Like the year when the ‘runaway’ clams from the Waikiki Aquarium were returned in Tupperware containers. My friends and I ended up making five huge clam costumes made of papier-mache, chicken wire and tapioca.

"But we try to recycle our costumes and props as much as possible year after year."

It’s all to help buoy the cast and audience in an infectious atmosphere of fun and jest. So to the tune of "There’s No Business Like Show Business," all together now:

"There’s no people like broke people,
To say at long last ‘NO!’
‘And fight back by ridiculing all the fools,
Who think our taxes are their own tools.
But on stage we’ll make ’em play by our own rules,
Let’s go — Gridiron Show!
Hana Hou! Gridiron Sho-o-o-w!"

 CORRECTIONS: » Chad Blair of the Honolulu Civil Beat will be part of the Gridiron cast. A previous version of this story erroneously stated that no one from the online news service was participating in this year’s show.