FRIDAY
Bill Engvall’s back in town to yuk it up
You have to give comedian Bill Engvall credit for taking chances.
The longtime comedian, who took a turn on the dance floor on “Dancing With the Stars” in 2013, recently took a shot atserious drama in the 2016 film “The Neighbor,” in which he played the creepy neighbor to a young couple.
Engvall is back on familiar turf doing stand-up with his return to the Hawaii Theatre today. His successful career in comedy includes appearances on all the late-night talk shows, national tours individually and on the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, and his own television sitcom. His “Here’s Your Sign” routine — a compendium of stupid things people say in obvious situations— is considered a classic.
He’s kept his comedy fresh through the podcast “My Two Cents,” available on podcastone.com, where he’s hosted several country musicians and discussed subjects like medical marijuana.
“My shows are about everyday life, and it’s not political or religious,” he told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser last year before a February appearance. “People get bombarded with that. I want to be the funny guy in your living room.”
>> Where: Hawaii Theatre. When: 8 p.m. today. Cost: $50-$125. Info: hawaiitheatre.com or 528-0506.
MONDAY
Mo‘olelo Festival presents native arts
The Pa‘i Foundation brings its Mo‘olelo Festival back to the Doris Duke Theatre on Monday for one night of performances, celebrating Hawaiian mo‘olelo (storytelling) and including oli (chant), mele (song) and hula, as well as Native American theater and conjunto music from Texas.
Featured performers include Robert Cazimero, pictured inset, and members of his Halau Na Kamalei o Lililehua, Jerry Santos, Moses Goods and Los Texmaniacs. Performances include the award-winning short play “Backstage, Blue Moon,”written by Mohawk writer and Pa‘i Foundation Managing Director Ed Bourgeois, and the mixed-media presentation “E Ola, E Ola ka Mo‘i” honoring Queen Lili‘uokalani, will be presented.
“Pele o Moanalua,” featuring actor and Hawaiian storyteller Moses Goods, pictured above, and Pua Ali‘i ‘Ilima, a halau hula under the direction of Vicky Holt Takamine and Jeffrey Takamine, will chronicle two important events in Moanalua’s history: how Pele came to Oahu during her search for a home and created Aliamanu (Salt Lake), and other craters; and a visit to Moanalua by Kekuiapoiwa, Kamehameha I’s mother.
“Conjunto Tejano Selections” will close the evening, featuring the Grammy Award-winning Los Texmaniacs performing conjunto tejano selections featuring use of the button accordion and bajo sexto, or “sixth bass.”
>> Where: Doris Duke Theatre, Honolulu Museum. When: 7 p.m. Monday. Cost: $15-$20; $5 for ages 12 and under. Info: paifoundation.org or 844-2001
>> Note: Presale tickets, $10-$15, with youth under 12 free, are available through Sunday at paifoundation.org/events.
SATURDAY
Samoan singing sensation to return to Blaisdell Concert Hall
Popular Kiwi trio Sol3 Mio returns to Hawaii on Saturday, bringing the versatile voices and clownish antics that completely entertained a Blaisdell crowd in February.
With a repertoire that encompasses opera, Broadway, pop and songs from their ancestral homeland, Samoa, the group has become one of most popular acts in New Zealand, with two two platinum-selling No. 1 albums: an eponymous debut album in 2013 and “Sol3 Mio: On Another Note” in 2015.
Brothers Pene and Amitai Pati, tenors, and their cousin Moses Mackay, a baritone, got their introduction to music through family and decided to form a group to raise money to go overseas to study. With their formal training in classical music well underway, they try to break down barriers between classical and pop music.
In the wake of an appearance here in February, Honolulu Star-Advertiser critic Ruth Bingham gave Sol3 Mio a rave review, calling Pene Pati “a truly spectacular tenor.” She described Amitai Pati’s voice as having “a mix of colors and warmth” and Mackay’s baritone as “dark, rich (and) lusciously smooth.”
>> Where: Blaisdell Concert Hall. When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday. Cost: $39-$95. Info: ticketmaster.com or 800-745-3000.
SATURDAY
Virtuoso piano player to play Orvis Auditorium
Pianist Marc-Andre Hamelin, known for his astounding technique and eclectic musical choices, performs Saturday as a last-minute substitute for Garrick Ohlsson.
Hamelin, 55, a native of Canada, was a child prodigy, starting piano at age 5 and winning the Canadian Music Competition at age 9. He is a prolific recording artist, having been giving the equivalent of lifetime achievement awards in both Germany and the U.K. for his more than 70 albums, which range from the traditional repertoire of Hadyn to Lizst, as well as more obscure composers such as Charles-Valentin Alkan and Nikolai Medtner.
Hamelin also composes, and he performs his own works in concert, a rarity in modern times. He is noted for producing an unusual array of colors and a full range of dynamics on the piano — impressive, as 18 dynamic levels have been identified on the instrument.
In a review of Hamelin’s performance of Schubert’s sentimental Sonata in B-flat, D. 960, which the pianist will perform here, the Philadelphia Inquirer praised his “utterly distinctive” interpretation and “virtuoso piano technique.”
Hamelin will put his technique on display with a performance of Schumann’s “Fantasie in C Major,” Op. 17, with its lightning-fast opening movement which is supposed to reflect Schumann’s distress over a separation from the composer’s beloved Clara.
>> Where: Orvis Auditorium, University of Hawaii-Manoa. When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday. Cost: $20-$60. Info: honoluluchambermusicseries.org or 956-8246.
