Diamond Head Theatre was the big winner with 32 awards in 16 of the 27 award categories as the Hawaii State Theatre Council announced the recipients of the 2018 Po‘okela Awards Monday evening at the Ko‘olau Golf Club in Kaneohe. DHT’s current production of “Newsies,” which closes Sunday won nine awards.
Manoa Valley Theatre and Paliku Theatre tied for second with 15 awards each.
Chaminade University, Hawaii Pacific University, the Hawaii Shakespeare Festival, the Hawaiian Mission Houses, Kumu Kahua Theatre, Leeward Community College, The Actors’ Group and the University of Hawaii at Manoa also received awards for excellence. Two groups that have received awards in previous years, All the World’s a Stage and The Playbuilders of Hawai’i Theatre Company, were dormant. A third, Honolulu Theatre for Youth (HTY), currently does not participate in the Po’okela Awards program and so its productions, playwrights, actors and stage designers are not eligible for awards.
Up to six honorees can be recognized in most categories.
Diamond Head Theatre Artistic Director John Rampage added four “Pokies” to his career collection with awards for his work as director and choreographer of DHT’s productions of “Ragtime” and “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder.”
Below is the complete list of winners provided by the Hawaii State Theatre Council.
2018 PO‘OKELA AWARDS
(CHM = Chaminade University; DHT = Diamond Head Theatre; HPU = Hawaii Pacific University; HSF = Hawaii Shakespeare Festival; HMH = Hawaiian Mission Houses; KKT = Kumu Kahua Theatre; LCC = Leeward Community College; MVT = Manoa Valley Theatre; PKU = Paliku Theatre; TAG = The Actors’ Group; UHM = University of Hawaii-Manoa)
OVERALL PLAY
>> “Calendar Girls” (DHT)
>> “The Legend of Georgia McBride” (MVT)
>> “Nora” (UHM)
>> “Comedy of Errors” (HSF)
>> “She Kills Monsters” (LCC)
>> “Seagull” (HSF)
OVERALL MUSICAL
>> “Sweeney Todd” (CHM)
>> “The King and I” (PKU)
>> “Ragtime” (DHT)
>> “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder” (DHT)
>> “Newsies” (DHT)
OVERALL NONTRADITIONAL PRODUCTION
>> “Oahu Cemetery Pupu Theatre: At Your Service” (HMH)
>> “Fights & Delights: Three Chinese Comedies” (UHM)
LEADING MALE IN A PLAY
>> Jonathan Sabalboro, “She Kills Monsters” (LCC)
>> Miguel Pa‘ekukui, “The Legend of Georgia McBride” (MVT)
>> Randall Galius, “Boy” (TAG)
>> Alex Monti Fox, “Seagull” (HSF)
>> Jeff Brackett, “The Legend of Georgia McBride” (MVT)
>> Aaron Klein, “Prodigal Son” (TAG)
LEADING FEMALE IN A PLAY
>> Christine Lamborn, “Anna” (UHM)
>> Stacy Ray, “Seagull” (HSF)
>> Juvy Lucina, “She Kills Monsters” (LCC)
>> Claire Fallon, “The Road to Mecca” (TAG)
>> Jo Pruden, “The Road to Mecca” (TAG)
FEATURED MALE IN A PLAY
>> Paul Yau, “The Happiest Song Plays Last” (TAG)
>> Ryan “Oki” Okinaka, “Wild Birds” (KKT)
>> Donovan Oakleaf, “Nora” (UHM)
>> Kevin Keaveney, “Picasso at the Lapin Agile” (TAG)
>> Justin Woznock, “She Kills Monsters” (LCC)
FEATURED FEMALE IN A PLAY
>> Malia Wessel, “Nora” (UHM)
>> Liz Stone, “Beyond Therapy” (CHM)
>> Jarica Mae Abella, “She Kills Monsters” (LCC)
>> Kira Moriguchi, “She Kills Monsters” (LCC)
>> Liz Stone, “Calendar Girls” (DHT)
LEADING MALE IN A MUSICAL
>> Garrett Hols, “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder” (DHT)
>> Drew Niles, “Nice Work If You Can Get It” (DHT)
>> Nicholas Amador, “Newsies” (DHT)
>> David Herman, “The Full Monty” (MVT)
>> Michael Ng, “The King and I” (PKU)
LEADING FEMALE IN A MUSICAL
>> Ahnya Chang, “Nice Work If You Can Get It” (DHT)
>> Kim Anderson, “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder” (DHT)
>> Lea Woods Almanza, “Ragtime” (DHT)
>> Stephanie Sanchez, “The Princess and the Iso Peanut” (MVT)
>> Kira Stone, “Newsies” (DHT)
FEATURED MALE IN A MUSICAL
>> Gabriel Giasoli, “Sweeney Todd” (CHM)
>> David Bachler, “Sweeney Todd” (CHM)
>> Isaiah Gundermann Graham, “Newsies” (DHT)
>> Swaine Kaui “The King and I” (PKU)
>> Matthew Pederson, “Nice Work If You Can Get It” (DHT)
>> Tyler Kanemori, “The Full Monty” (MVT)
FEATURED FEMALE IN A MUSICAL
>> Celia Chun, “A Charlie Brown Christmas” (DHT)
>> Rache Sapla, “Newsies” (DHT)
>> Brooke Alcuran, “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder” (DHT)
>> Riley Noland, “Sweeney Todd” (CHM)
>> Suzanne Green, “Sweeney Todd” (CHM)
ENSEMBLE PERFORMANCE IN A PLAY
>> “Twelf Nite O Whateva!” (HMH)
>> “Julius Caesar” (HPU)
>> “Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery” (MVT)
>> “Shear Madness” (MVT)
>> “Dead of Night” (KKT)
ENSEMBLE PERFORMANCE IN A MUSICAL
>> “The Spitfire Grill” (UHM)
ENSEMBLE PERFORMANCE IN A NONTRADITIONAL PRODUCTION
>> “Oahu Cemetery Pupu Theatre: At Your Service” (HMH)
DIRECTOR OF A PLAY
>> Swaine Kaui, “Choir Boy” (TAG)
>> Betty Burdick, “She Kills Monsters” (LCC)
>> Stacy Ray Groves, “Nora” (UHM)
>> Rob Duval, “Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery” (MVT)
>> Miles Phillips, “Shear Madness” (MVT)
DIRECTOR OF A MUSICAL
>> Michael Ng, “The Princess and the Iso Peanut” (MVT)
>> John Rampage, “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder” (DHT)
>> John Rampage, “Ragtime” (DHT)
>> Brother Gary E. Morris, S.M., “Sweeney Todd” (HMN)
>> Mary Chesnut Hicks, “The King and I” (PKU)
DIRECTOR OF A NONTRADITIONAL PRODUCTION
>> William Ha‘o, “Oahu Cemetery Theatre: At Your Service” (HMH)
>> Elizabeth Wichmann Walczak and Mark Branner, “Fights & Delights: Three Chinese Comedies” (UHM)
MUSICAL DIRECTOR
>> Phil Hidalgo, “Newsies” (DHT)
>> Ike Webster, “Nice Work If You Can Get It” (DHT)
>> Clarke Bright, “The King and I” (PKU)
>> Jenny Shiroma, “Fun Home” (MVT)
>> Tim Carney, “Sweeney Todd” (CHM)
MOVEMENT/DANCE CHOREOGRAPHER
>> Caryn Yee & Lisa Kimsey, “Nice Work If You Can Get It” (DHT)
>> Andrew Sakaguchi, “The King and I” (PKU)
>> John Rampage & Celia Chun, “Ragtime” (DHT)
>> John Rampage, “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder” (DHT)
COSTUME DESIGN
>> Anna Foster, “The King and I” (PKU)
>> Sister Grace Capellas, O.S.F., “Sweeney Todd” (CHM)
>> Iris Kim, “The Comedy of Errors” (HSF)
>> James Corry, “The Legend of Georgia McBride” (MVT)
>> Kimmerie Jones, “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder” (DHT)
SOUND DESIGN AND ENGINEERING
>> Kerri Yoneda, “Newsies” (DHT)
>> Garrick Paikai, “Who Killed Gilbert Botello?” (KKT)
>> Sarah Duval, “Romeo & Juliet” (HSF)
>> Brian Shevelenko, “The Spitfire Grill” (UHM)
>> Claire Paul, “Sweeney Todd” (CHM)
>> Daniel Yoo, “The King and I” (PKU)
SET DESIGN
>> R. Andrew Doan, “Nanaue the Teenage Sharkman” (PKU)
>> DeAnne Kennedy, “The King and I” (PKU)
>> Willie Sabel, “Newsies” (DHT)
>> Rachel Filbeck, “The Spitfire Grill” (UMH)
>> James Corry, “The Legend of Georgia McBride” (MVT)
LIGHTING DESIGN
>> Janine Myers, “Nanaue the Teenage Sharkman” (Paliku)
>> Christopher Patrinos, “The Spitfire Grill” (UHM)
>> Thomas Tochiki and Jim Aina, “Boy” (TAG)
>> Christopher Patrinos, “Beyond Therapy” (CHM)
>> Jonah Bobilin, “Sweeney Todd” (CHM)
>> Lloyd “Sandy” Riford III, “The King and I” (Paliku)
HAIR, MAKEUP AND WIG DESIGN
>> Lisa Ponce De Leon, “Sweeney Todd” (CHM)
>> Lisa Ponce De Leon, “The Legend of Georgia McBride” (MVT)
>> Hannah Schauer Gaili & Tan Ma, “Fights & Delights: Three Chinese Comedies” (UHM)
>> Friston Ho‘okano, “Ragtime” (DHT)
>> Linda Lockwood, “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder” (DHT)
HAWAII RESIDENT PLAYWRIGHT’S ORIGINAL WORK
>> William Kahele, “Living Room” (KKT)
>> Eric Anderson, “Wild Birds” (KKT)
>> Zachary Thomas Woods, “Oahu Cemetery Pupu Theatre: At Your Service” (HMH)
>> Moses Goods, “Nanaue the Teenage Sharkman” (PKU)
GUEST ARTIST (NONHAWAII RESIDENT)
>> Tammy Colucci (director), “Newsies” (DHT)
>> Kathleen Stuart (actor), “The King and I” (PKU)
>> Kent Overshown (actor), “Ragtime” (DHT)
ADJUDICATORS’ SPECIAL AWARDS
>> Michael Harada (mask design), “She Kills Monsters” (LCC)
>> J. Edward Murray (musical direction in a play), “Choir Boys” (TAG)
>> Yan Ma and Mark Branner (guide for young audiences), “Fights & Delights: Three Chinese Comedies” (UHM)
>> Dwayne Sakaguchi (dance performance), “Newsies” (DHT)
>> Faith Kaminaka (dance performance), “The King and I” (PKU)
