Christopher K.T. Bright, grandson of director Ronald Bright and his wife, Mo, is an emerging filmmaker in the artistic ohana till now known primarily for stage, music and academic achievements.
Christopher is the Brights’ eldest grandchild and the son of Royal Hawaiian Band Director Clarke Bright and Kamehameha Schools music teacher Lynell Bright. Home this summer after graduating with honors from Chapman University in Orange County, Calif., he’s touting an evocative 20-minute black-and-white historical drama, "Tsuru," which was part of his Dodge Film School honors requirement. The Brights attended Christopher’s graduation to-do that included a Disneyland reunion with the graduate’s uncle (and actor) Michael Bright, plus family showbiz pals Cliffton Hall and Robert Orosco, before going on a cruise to Alaska.
Now Christopher is awaiting his cinematic close-up.
The film should have intense local interest with its World War II roots, set in May 1942 amid U.S. government internment practices. It focuses on the Ikedas, an elderly Japanese couple in hiding in a shack in a California canyon. Mariko, the wife (Takayo Fischer, a former real-life internee in camps in California and Arkansas), cares for her ill husband, Yoshio (Ken Takemoto); their savior is a young American nurse, Ellis (Nicole Starrett), who provides survival support amid a climate of governmental suspicion and internment threats.
Christopher directed the project, buoyed by a Kickstarter campaign, from a screenplay he co-wrote with brother Timothy Bright. Now they’re awaiting film festivals’ responses. …
STAGE SHORTS:Director Ronald Bright and Paliku Theatre manager Tom Holowach will stage the Broadway musical "Hairspray" beginning Sept. 26 at the Windward Community College venue. Auditions for all roles — leads and ensemble — will be at 6 p.m. July 7 and 8 at Paliku, with callbacks July 9.
The musical and subsequent movie version feature a male as the mother, famously portrayed by Harvey Fierstein on Broadway and John Travolta on screen. …
If you follow Joe Moore and Pat Sajak on TV and adore Loretta Ables Sayre from Broadway and TV commercials, it’s likely you’ll find laughs in "Wrestling Ernest Hemingway," playing for the final time at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Hawaii Theatre. The KHON anchorman andthe "Wheel of Fortune" host adapted the script from a movie, but the bromance is a challenge, loaded with sufficient howls but awkward scene changes and an unrealistic 11-performance run with too many seats. …
TIMETABLE: Wolfgang’s Steakhouse by Wolfgang Zwiener in Waikiki is expanding its last call for dinner till midnight through Aug. 31 to meet demand.That’s something to howl about, for those who love their beef.And the brand’s Tokyo outpost in Roppongi has been so popular expansion is underway for at least two more abroad, including Manila next year, according to restaurant managing partner Peter Zwiener. …
"Hawaii Five-0’s" fifth-season premiere will be at 8 p.m. Sept. 26 on CBS. …
ITEMIZATIONS: Jack Cione, the "Follies" director, is back from a quick trip to Broadway, where he caught 10 shows. Alas, he developed heart trouble and requested firefighters at an 8th Avenue fire station to take his vitals, resulting in an overnight stay at Mount Sinai Hospital. "Looks like my last New York trip alone," he sighed upon return. …
It’s Alvin Chan, not Chang, as mentioned here last week, whose "A Bollywood Robin Hood" will launch Honolulu Theatre for Youth’s 60th-anniversary season beginning Aug. 15. Apologies. …
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.
