Windward Community College presents Burning / Memory, directed by Taurie Kinoshita and performed by Theatre 260 students at Palikū Theatre, March 8–17.
Like most traditional Noh theater, Burning / Memory features ghosts, poetic text, startling visual images and deals with tragic subject matter. The three cross-cultural, one-act plays take dramatic theories of Noh theater and translate them for a contemporary western audience.
Burning / Memory is comprised of three Noh theater-inspired, one-act plays: Cane Fields Burning written by Kemuel DeMoville, Memory of a Dream and Remembering the Fall by Taurie Kinoshita.
Cane Fields Burning
The play uses a chorus of actors and deals with the repeating cycle of domestic violence—as a young man replicates the abusive actions of his father.
Memory of a Dream
Adapted from the Noh play Matsukaze, an itinerant priest meets a ghost—the ghost is Matsukaze, a woman trapped between worlds forever longing for her lost love. Memory of a Dream uses poetry from well-known western poets to achieve a poetic-referencing technique used in Noh theater.
Remembering the Fall
Loosely inspired by the play Atsumori, a journalist relives the death of an enemy combatant at his own hands. Wracked by guilt, he tries to gain closure. Performed by Windward CC students: Raymond Zach Thompson, Daphnei Hussein, Juvyln Lucina, Noah Schuetz, Shantel Au, Caleb Cordova, Micah Souza, Cassidy Keiko Patmont, John R. Barajas Jr., Stuart Featheran Jr., Manuel A. Moreno and Chivalry Butler.
Show schedule:
- March 8, 9 at 7:30 p.m. (Post-show talk with cast on Saturday, March 9)
- March 10 at 4 p.m.
- March 14 at 4 p.m.
- March 15, 16 at 7:30 p.m.
- March 17 at 4 p.m.
Due to adult situations and themes, the play is recommended for ages 14 and older.
Purchase tickets online or call (808) 235-7315 for more information.
—By Bonnie Beatson
