Review: DUKE at Blue Note Hawai'i

There’s history taking place at The Blue Note Hawai'i. In the metaphorical sense, Duke marks the first time a theatrical show has graced the stage at the iconic venue. In the literal sense, actor/writer/producer Moses Goods takes the audience on a historical journey through Duke Kahanamoku’s incredible life, from age 4 in 1890 to his death in 1977 at age 68, set against the backdrop of a rapidly changing cultural landscape in Hawai’i. In a feat nearly as impressive as Duke’s own Olympic records, Goods presents an impeccably dramatized telling of the icon’s life story, portraying not only the Father of Surfing himself, but a myriad of other characters (I lost count at 10)—including Duke’s British swimming coach, fellow Olympian Jim Thorpe (in a monologue delivered while doing pushups), and a local 1950s housewife dressed in a mu’umuu’u I could swear was purloined from my own Tūtū’s closet. Goods seamlessly transitions among all these characters and narratives with practiced ease and affability, utilizing only minor costume changes and occasional video and audio transitions projected onto a small screen upstage to facilitate the lightning-fast transformations. For over an hour straight, Goods never let the energy or the audience engagement drop even for a second, leaving the crowd breathless by the end.

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