A theatrical play likely to be deeply personal for Hawaii Island residents will be presented for one night only at the University of Hawaii at Hilo Performing Arts Center this month.
“Mendokusai” is a local drama that won the 2021 Hawaii Prize in Kumu Kahua Theatre’s playwriting competition and premiered in Honolulu during August and September this year.
Written by UH-Hilo alum Eric Stack, the play tells the story of a local family torn apart by the Thirty Meter Telescope controversy and protests on Maunakea as the family members struggle to balance loss with love.
Stack was inspired to write this play from his own relationship with his wife as well as watching the Big Island endure the 2018 Kilauea lava flow and the rising tensions from the TMT controversy and eventual protests.
In the play, after losing his mother during the 2018 Kilauea eruption in Puna, Kukunu Waikahe — played by Thomas Chock — has disconnected from his culture and community, and has taken refuge in a new marriage.
However, his daughter’s position at the forefront of the TMT dispute forces him to intervene, setting in motion a series of events which not all will survive.
UH-Hilo associate professor Justina Mattos directed the play when it was performed in Honolulu and will be directing the same Oahu-based cast for the Hilo performance.
“When I first read the play in an online hui, I was thinking this is a poignant, powerful, layered play. I was honestly relieved that I wouldn’t be asked to direct it living on the Big Island,” Mattos said. “However, (Stack) thought it was important someone from Hawaii Island would direct the play.”
“Mendokusai” was performed in August and September at the Kumu Kahua Theatre and received good reviews.
The play involves multiple languages — Hawaiian, Japanese, English — as well as multiple cultural elements that required expertise in those areas.
“The audiences didn’t start off huge, but it’s grown, and we ended up having sold out shows,” Mattos said. “People felt moved by the circumstances of the characters, and people enjoyed that there were topical issues addressed. I’m eager to see how Big Island audiences differ from Oahu, as it is so close to home.”
While the play is a drama, there are some humorous aspects that are very Big Island-centric, which is part of the reason why Stack and UH-Hilo wanted to make sure the play was brought here.
The 2018 eruption and the TMT protests in 2019 give context to a bigger story regarding the importance of family and relationships.
“The play utilizes the TMT controversy as a backdrop, but what we’re really witnessing is the familial love between these characters,” Mattos said. “We see how conflicts like TMT can polarize people, even within a family, and ask how to bridge a divide. Because, at the end of everything, what truly matters are relationships.”
“Mendokusai” will be presented at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 21, at the UH-Hilo Performing Arts Center.
Tickets are $10 for general admission, and $5 for UH-Hilo and Hawaii Community College students and youth 17 and under.
Email Kelsey Walling at kwalling@hawaiitribune-herald.com.