After a successful United Kingdom tour of her Tony-nominated role of Bloody Mary in "South Pacific," singer-actress Loretta Ables Sayre has settled back into her Mililani Mauka home and finally is exploring local showbiz again.
Ables Sayre had to readjust to domestic driving on the "right" side of the road (unlike the "wrong" side in Europe), and she’s now journeying east of Waipio Costco to participate in a few things.
For starters, she emceed and performed in Diamond Head Theatre and Star-Advertiser’s ‘Ilima Awards last Monday evening; it felt "good to be on stage again (working with director John Rampage) and singing and flexing those performance muscles again," she said. "It’s so nice to be welcomed back so warmly by the performing community here."
She did a bit with Hawaii Opera Theatre’s "Die Fledermaus" last week and joined publicist-husband David Sayre in the Hawaiian Humane Society’s Pet Walk on Oct. 7 with Pawsitively Pets and Hawaii Pet Nanny with a newly adopted pooch, Kaimana, a 3-month-old golden retriever "who fills our hearts and our house with so much puppy joy." Kaimana replaces Makamaka, the family’s first pet, in whose memory they did the pet walk. …
Martin Nievera and Ai-Ai de las Alas, two stars from the Philippines, will make a rare appearance in Hawaii together, in a show at 8:30 p.m. Thursday at the Magic of Polynesia Showroom at the Waikiki Holiday Inn Beachcomber Hotel.
Dubbed "The King and Ai-Ai," the event is a fundraiser for victims of August’s Typhoon Gener in Manila, which left hundreds dead and mass floodwater devastation. Nievera is the Hawaii-raised concert king of the Philippines; Ai-Ai is the queen of Philippine comedy.
Ticket information was not available at press time, so call the hotel for details. …
CHATTER: Cornell Nicholas, aka Tuffy, a producer and veteran circus performer, is eager to bring Cirque Polynesia to the renovated outdoor pool space of the Queen Kapiolani Hotel in Waikiki next month. Tuffy’s first venture was staged at the old IMAX Waikiki theater, then later rebooted at the Hyatt Regency Maui at Kaanapali, where it ran for a couple of years. Tuffy and business partner Doug Harris of Nicholas Harris Entertainment want another Waikiki locale to rig their show, which is inspired by Cirque du Soleil but with a local spin. …
Speaking of Cirque du Soleil: Its "Quidam" closes today at Blaisdell Arena. It’s been refreshing for those seeking spectacle with substance — nothing ordinary, everything extraordinary, a visual and aural feast. …
Jack Cione‘s "Follies" show, dubbed "Come to the Cabaret Ol’ Chum," will be presented Nov. 3 at the Palladium Ballroom at the Ala Wai Golf Course. It’ll be a fundraising event for the Hawaii Ballroom Dance Association, with member ballroom dancers participating alongside some residents of Arcadia. Cione is producing and directing. …
Honolulu-born bass-baritone Jamie Offenbach, Falke in Hawaii Opera Theatre’s "Die Fledermaus" opera tonight and Tuesday at Blaisdell Concert Hall, is looking to plant roots here permanently, with dog Frenchie Nola Pensacola. …
ELSEWHERE: "Marry Me a Little," an off-Broadway show featuring songs by Stephen Sondheim, has been extended through Oct. 27 at the Clurman Theatre in New York.
I mention this, in case you’re Broadway-bound, since local boy Jason Tam ("A Chorus Line," "Lysistrata Jones") co-stars with Lauren Molina ("Sweeney Todd") as young New York singles who play out their fantasies not knowing they’re just a floor away from each other. The revue is a trunk show of rarely heard and often neglected Sondheim ditties. …
And that’s "Show Biz." …
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.
