Kumu Kahua Theatre Presents WAY OF A GOD

Kumu Kahua Theatre proudly presents Way of a God by Dennis Carroll, directed by Taurie Kinoshita, running January 16 - February 16, 2019.

Captain Cook lands in Hawaii during the Makahiki festival. Hawaiians have never seen anyone who looks like these strangely attired white beings. Mistaken for the God Lono, Cook begins to feel godly - and behave as if he is a god. Disaster follows hubris: epic in its scope, Dennis Carroll's historical tragedy chronicles Cook's journey toward first contact, and catastrophe.

Playwright Dennis Carroll is one of the founding members of Kumu Kahua Theatre, which is now in its 49th season of productions. "I received significant advice on Hawaiian history from two sources," says Mr. Carroll. "In the early stages of the development of the play, Jo Scheder spotted errors and misconceptions and alerted me to the scabrous debate between two anthropologists, Gananeth Obeyesekere and Marshall Sahlins. Those two differed on the nature of the "deification" of Cook, and I chose to favor Sahlins's theory about the political and religious rivalry between two factions of Lono priests, one centered on the court at Ka'awaloa and the other at Kealakekua village. Hawaiian resource Tammy Haili'ōpua Baker zeroed in on some other cultural inaccuracies and provided translations of important Hawaiian language materials, some of which were related to Hawaiian oral tradition about Cook."

Following the performance on Friday, January 24th there will be a free talk story with the playwright, directors, and cast following the performance. These talk stories are offered on the 2nd Friday of each production run and include an opportunity to gain behind the scenes insight from the director, cast and playwright (when available).

Tickets for performances can be purchased with a credit card by calling 536-4441, or by visiting the box office at 46 Merchant Street (corner of Bethel and Merchant Streets, downtown) between 11am and 3pm Monday through Friday. Tickets can also be purchased at KumuKahua.org.