THE YELLOW BOAT Comes to the Kennedy Theatre Next Month

Content Advisories: References to chronic illness, blood, isolation, and death – handled with age-appropriate care and framed through the lens of creativity, empathy, and hope.

The Yellow Boat follows Benjamin, a child born with congenital hemophilia, whose bright imagination helps him navigate a life marked by chronic illness and, ultimately, an HIV diagnosis. As his world becomes increasingly shaped by hospital visits, treatments, and unexpected loss, Benjamin turns inward – channeling his thoughts and emotions into drawings, colors, and stories that allow him to express what others can’t always see. In one especially powerful moment, coloring with a doctor becomes the only way he can communicate the pain he feels. With honesty and tenderness, the play explores how creativity becomes a vessel for healing, identity, and connection – especially in moments of deep loneliness. “This isn’t just a children’s show – it’s a heartfelt experience for all ages,” says director Mante. “It celebrates how the human spirit turns pain into art and illness into beauty. It’s imaginative, uplifting, and transformative.”

Mante has a talented artistic team and designers bringing this story to life. Set designer Juliana
Damrow’s staging transforms the intimate Lab Theatre space into a dynamic world of invention and play. Audiences will be seated on either side of the stage, surrounding the action as if inside Benjamin’s imagination. Kelli Finnegan’s lighting design and projections wash the walls with expressive color, while reconfigurable set pieces and ordinary objects evoke the feeling of watching children transform their world through creative play. The overall aesthetic reflects Benjamin’s own drawings, including the yellow boat he lovingly sketches – a symbol of the journey he takes. 

While filled with moments of joy and inventiveness, The Yellow Boat also confronts serious topics including illness, hospitalization, isolation, and death. Benjamin’s story ends with his passing, and the production handles this moment with great care and sensitivity. Families are encouraged to engage with these themes before and after the show and are invited to stay for the post-show discussion if attending the Friday night performance to reflect and ask questions to the director and cast.

Mante’s artistic team also brings a cultural dimension to the piece by incorporating handwoven
Filipino textiles into the costume design by Amber Baker along with movements choreographed by Nani Marcos and Gwen Arbaugh to live music underscoring under music director Paul Gabriel Cosme to further immerse audiences in the world and aesthetic of the play. “Each costume is a celebration of Filipino artistry and heritage,” Mante explains, “Hawai‘i’s multicultural environment makes this kind of storytelling feel especially resonant.”

As a Primetime Series production, The Yellow Boat continues Kennedy Theatre’s commitment to producing transformative works that invite intergenerational audiences to engage emotionally, think deeply, and leave inspired.