Hot Picks
Theater

Things that go bump in Chinatown

Ghosts in the Plague Year
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Ghosts in the Plague Year / It’s 1900 in Chinatown. Men gather in a brothel to smoke opium, imbibe alcohol and satiate their desires with the pleasures of the female flesh. Meanwhile, the government is working overtime to crack down on the bubonic plague and will do it by any means possible. (A century… [»Read]


Theater

A land before HYT

The Dinosaur Play
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The Dinosaur Play / It takes more than just the Jurassic Park trilogy, Godzilla mania and the colossal Tyrannosaurus Rex fossil display in New York City’s Museum of Natural History to satisfy our fascination with dinosaurs. Heck, the prehistoric creatures–whose vitality exists in… [»Read]


Clubs

Et tu, hangover?

’80s Pop Muzik: The Toga Party
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’80s Pop Muzik: The Toga Party / What the Island needs now is a toga party. Enter Bar 35. Grab that bedsheet, wrap it around yourself and throw some leaves on your head for the latest edition of ’80s Pop Muzik: The Toga Party. Get all Belushi, indulge your inner Animal House, raise a glass… [»Read]


Ohana

My big fat Greek weekend

30th Annual Honolulu Greek Festival
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30th Annual Honolulu Greek Festival / Greeks believe they invented festivals. The truth is, they probably did, or they were at least second to the Egyptians. Were 14th century festivals stocked with food booths and “I’m A Greek God” T-shirts? Who knows, but the 30th Annual Honolulu Greek Festival has… [»Read]


Whatevas

A cup of rib-tickles

Red Cup Diaries
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Red Cup Diaries / The folks over at the Laughtrack Theater are a rib-tickling bunch. Known for its improvisational comedy, the troupe embodies the spontaneity and inventiveness of a genre that hinges on last-second resolve, questions instead of answers and an anything-goes attitude. One night… [»Read]


whatevas

Go go Cocoa!

The F.E.M. Show
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The F.E.M. Show / The models, the makeup, the hair, oh my! Like Ms. Cocoa Chandelier herself, each of her spectacular shows bring more than meets the smoky eye. The queen takes her place on the gooooorrrrrrrgeous Leeward Community College Theatre Mainstage–is there any other stage… [»Read]


Theater

Happy 15, li’dat

Da Anniversary Show
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Da Anniversary Show / 1995 was a very important year. There was Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction, the stellar hit “Big Poppa” by Notorious B.I.G. and the infamous one-liner heard in yellow school busses ’round the world–“You can’t sit here.” It was also the year Lisa Matsumoto and… [»Read]


Concerts

Precious Koz moments

Dave Koz and Jonathan Butler
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Dave Koz and Jonathan Butler / On paper, Dave Koz and Jonathan Butler seem like a perfectly incompatible pairing. Koz is an openly gay, Grammy-nominated saxophonist from California. When he smiles, he has the face of an aging Precious Moments doll. On At the Movies, Koz’s eighth solo album… [»Read]


Concerts

Sweet and Django

Hot Club of Hulaville
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Hot Club of Hulaville / Fans of gypsy-infused guitarist Django Reinhardt or Woody Allen’s Sweet and Lowdown, which starred Sean Penn as the legendary performer, will want to sashay down to the Doris Duke Theatre for what promises to be a musical extravaganza. Virtuoso jazz band Hot… [»Read]


Whatevas

Tropical tutus

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Cool Ballets for a Hot Summer–A Medley of American Dance / A ballet in the final weeks of summer might seem a little unseasonable. Swanky evenings spent scrutinizing the precise movements of ballerinas in a dark, beaux-arts auditorium calls to mind snowflakes and Christmastime and nutcrackers, but Ballet Hawaii likes to change… [»Read]


Clubs

Jai ho!

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Bollywood Nights / An escape to a world of bhangra, Indian eats and Bollywood jigs seems inconceivable, or at least fanciful, to most of us in Hawaii. Not only is India on the opposite side of the globe, in these tough times, traveling is like a thing of the past. But Pipeline Café’s… [»Read]


Clubs

Beat it

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Beat Root Hip-hop Beat Battle / From the sonically sick club bangers to the street-grimy head nodders, Hawaii hip-hop producers will once again get the opportunity to showcase their homemade creations in the first-round qualifier of the Beat RootHip-hop Beat Battle. Budding beatsmiths, fueled… [»Read]


Clubs

Shing-a-ling

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ShingO2 / Hip-hop’s universal appeal is exemplified by the work of Japanese MC-producer ShingO2. Known on the underground tip for spitting his lyrical fury in Japanese and English, whatever the dialect, he has earned his share of respect. He went from casual listener to hip-hop… [»Read]


Concerts

Tempting

The Four Tops and the Temptations
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The Four Tops and the Temptations / Hey baby boomers. Feeling neglected and/or disgusted upon hearing concert announcements for Justin Bieber and Adam Lambert? Getting sick and tired that the past decade of choice is the 1980s, known for bizarre mullet-hair and synthesizer pop? Well, faster than you can cue… [»Read]


Whatevas

Dirty martini (with a twist)

The Academy of Tease
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The Academy of Tease / The minute he walks into the joint, she can tell he is a man of distinction–a real big spender. “Hey, big spender,” she wants to say, swinging her hips like Josephine Baker, “wouldn’t you like to spend a little time with me?” He looks her way but she loses her… [»Read]


Whatevas

It’s not fake!

WWE 2010 Raw World Tour
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WWE 2010 Raw World Tour / In many ways, mixed martial arts and ultimate fighting fits our contemporary times perfectly. We want our grappling visceral, painful and real. But what of the quaintness of yesteryear, the theatrical days of chair smashing, piledrivers and some good ole-fashioned running… [»Read]


Milking muscles

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Ashiatsu / It’s one thing to have a bunch of steamy, hot stones placed on one’s back, it’s another to have someone’s feet performing the pressure. On Thursday, unsatisfied or curious massage lovers can participate in a complimentary, five-minute Ashiatsu demonstration…. [»Read]


Concerts

Kazaam! It’s comedy!

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Shaquille O’Neal’s All Star Comedy Jam / Who can forget Shaq’s hilarious game-changing turn in 1996’s Kazaam? But then again, maybe that was “hilarious” for all the wrong reasons. Ragging on this legend’s personal foul never gets old, but 14 years later, Shaq’s still taking his shot at comedy,… [»Read]


Film

Flea glee

Mighty Uke
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Mighty Uke / The ‘ukulele, which loosely translates to “jumping flea” in Hawaiian, was developed in 19th century Hawaii as a variation of the cavaquinho, a small, four-string guitar made popular by Portuguese immigrants. Since, the wooden lute has gone through many far-reaching… [»Read]


Books

The good wife

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Margaret Dilloway / Chick lit is still booming and How to be an American Housewife is certain to appeal to local readers. The first novel by Margaret Dilloway explores two very different types of Asian woman making their way in this country. The first half of the book is devoted… [»Read]