‘Remains’ holds nothing back in portrayal of 442nd heroes

Remembrances for the 70th anniversary of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team continue with Kumu Kahua Theatre’s latest play, "All That Remains."

The 442nd and the 100th Battalion were composed entirely of Japa­nese-Americans, with a large bulk of the members from Hawaii. The play is set in the Vosges forest, where in October 1944, after 10 days of brutal combat liberating the French towns of Bruyeres and Biffontaine, the 442nd rescued the "Lost Battalion" from Nazi forces.

Twenty-five years after World War II, a young man known only as the Traveler hikes up to the forest to seek a monument to the AJA soldiers on the border of France and Germany. His father was one of the men killed there, and he seems to feel his visit will give him a sort of closure. Spirits of the dead military men soon visit him and tell him their story.

Playwright Mona Z. Smith uses these ghosts (inspired by noh theater) to flash back to Hawaii and how the bravado-filled boy known as Cowboy manages to goad all of his other Japa­nese-American friends into joining the Army after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Once enlisted, the group soon discovers that the "haoles" think of them with the same disdain as they do the Japa­nese from Japan. In a sense they become, as one character puts it, "a bastard battalion" that must prove itself worthy not only of battle, but to be American.

Each actor goes for broke in his performance, especially because most of the cast has the burden of playing two or three minor characters in addition to main ones. Director Traci Mari­ano’s cues here are clear and not confusing at all: a simple loud rap on a piece of wood, or the switching of hats, or the addition of eyeglasses, keeps the transformations simple and effective. Within seconds a member of the 442nd suddenly becomes a white FBI agent or an elderly parent, without even leaving the stage.

Chris Masato Doi as Cowboy brings a sense of authority to his role as the leader of the pack, but he injects a quiet sense of doubt and fear as well. Shiro Kawai is Yoyo, a Japa­nese-American from Japan, and through extremely accented English he makes us understand that his character is all too intensely aware of what goes on around him. Royce R. Oka­zaki plays Squirt, and he enthusiastically brings a much-needed sense of humor to the eventual despair that surrounds the troops.

The production is spartan with minimal props and subtle lighting effects. Make sure all arms and legs are securely within your aisle seats, though, because these soldiers continually come running, stomping and marching around you, making use of the theater’s in-the-round layout.

Some of the play’s experimental style can be jarring at times. The paranormal activity device in the narrative is treated a bit too casually within the story’s context at the beginning, and it’s a little unclear how one significant character is killed. But perhaps these ambiguities add to the mystical noh warrior vibe.

What does remain after watching "All That Remains" is a respectful tribute and also a grim vision of what these men endured to support liberty and justice, as well as their heroic loyalty to one another and their country.