SATURDAY

>> Annual Kualoa Ranch lu‘au has music, auctions

Feast for fun and for a cause at Habilitat’s 18th Annual Lu‘au, Auction and Benefit Concert on Saturday.

Kualoa Ranch will host the all-day luau, one of Oahu’s largest with an expected 2,000 guests.

And while the menu itself sounds enticing enough – beef stew, lomi salmon, kalua pig, poi and haupia are among the featured dishes – the entertainment also promises plenty to enjoy, with island contemporary star Peni Dean kicking things off at around 10 a.m. and the great Hawaiian stylist Amy Hanaialii taking the stage at around noon.

Later in the day, Moke Boy, winner of the first Hawaiian falsetto competition in 1995, and the up-and-coming trio City Boys share their talents starting at around 2 p.m.

If you’re looking for something to take home from the event, there will be two auctions, live and silent, with the live auction from 1 to 2 p.m. The luau’s auctions have traditionally offered some attractive prizes, from performance-quality ukulele to neighbor island trips to artwork and electronics.

For kids, the family-friendly event will offer free activities, including face painting, bounce houses and balloon twisting.

Proceeds from the event go to Habilitat, a nonprofit drug addiction treatment center in Kaneohe.

SATURDAY

>> Country singer Kalsey Kulyk headlines annual BBQ fest

Summer is almost here, so it’s time to break out the grill. But if you’re not quite ready to do it yourself, then head on over to the Hilton Hawaiian Village on Saturday for the third annual Honolulu BBQ Festival.

This year’s event is a Southern-style event, with country musician Kalsey Kulyk headlining the event. Kulyk’s life story reads like a country music song, starting with her early years growing up in the small town of Hudson Bay, Saskatchewan.

She was diagnosed with cancer at age 17, and her experiences battling cancer inspired her songwriting; within two years she was in remission and had moved to Las Vegas to work on her music.

Now living in Nashville, Kulyk received the Canadian Country Music Association’s Discovery Award last year.

Local entertainers will also join in the fun, with blues artist Larry Dupio and soul singer John Akapo taking the stage, along with Anuhea, one of the most successful of local artists with two albums of island music and reggae that have reached the Billboard World Music charts.

As for the food, y’all better come hungry. The menu features Southern-style BBQ, with smoked beef brisket, St. Louis-cut pork spare ribs and smoked chicken as entrees; side dishes like bourbon sweet potato casserole, baby back mac n’ cheese and Deep South peach baked beans; and blueberry and banana cream pie for dessert.

SATURDAY

>> DJ Markus Schulz headlines music festival at Hawaiian Brian’s

Hawaiian Brian’s will be taken over by EDM and art on Saturday with the Audiorise Music Festival.

The entire venue, which includes a large billiards hall, a small studio and a mainstage performance area, will be devoted to the festival, which combines music with visual arts.

“This is the first time the entire venue’s going to be utilized,” said Brad Wong of Audiophile Entertainment, which has frequently presented EDM events at Hawaiian Brian’s and is one of two sponsors for this event. “Were going to have live art demonstrations, and all three rooms will have different genres of music.”

Markus Schulz, a well-known trance DJ, headlines. Schulz is known for his “Global DJ Broadcast” that airs on several online stations; he’s also the founder of Coldharbour Recordings. He was named America’s No. 1 DJ by DJ Times in 2012.

“He’s been a pretty big figure not only in trance music, but in the Electronic Dance Music movement as a whole,” Wong said. “He usually only does these big festival shows with big audiences, so it’s pretty special that he’s going to be here.”

Local DJs will also perform in other rooms.

The visual arts component will focus on street art, Wong said, with DJ and artist Jodin Trumata doing live art. There will also body painting and jewelry-making.

“My passion’s always been to combine different kinds of art in one event,” Wong said. “I love music, but I love visual art too, and being able to experience that and pass that on to our fans is what I’m shooting for.”

THURSDAY

>> Local WWII short film screens at Hawaii Theatre

During the war years, taxi dancers were an inexpensive, tasteful way for soldiers to get companionship. A woman would dance with soldiers for a small fee, collected in 10- cent tickets, and if the soldier ran out of tickets, she would “taxi” off to dance with another soldier.

Now local auteur Brayden Yoder has created “The Last Taxi Dance,” a short film set in a dance club during World War II.

His period drama, which is still in final production stages, stars local actress Danielle Zalopany as a taxi dancer “who resents some of the changes that have come with all the influx of mainlanders and servicemembers coming to Honolulu,” Yoder said.

She meets a serviceman (Max Holtz) who’s forgotten something at the club and eventually forms an understanding with him.

“It’s a bit of a modern lense on this historical story. It tells the story from the Native Hawaiian’s perspective,” said Yoder, who used local talent for his cast and crew and shot the film in the former Indigo restaurant in Chinatown. “The theme of the story is about connection: how do we talk to one another other in this day and age?”

People can get a sneak preview of the short film at a fundraiser at Hawaii Theatre on Thursday. The event will include appearances by Zalopany and other cast members, a filmed, behind-the-scenes look at the making of the movie and a sneak preview of the trailer, as well as live music and food.

There will be two events, one from 5 to 7 p.m. and another from 8 to 10 p.m.