Audiences have stomped to the big Off-Broadway percussion hit Stomp, and have enjoyed the talent of Tap Dogs, Momix, the Hawaii International Jazz Festival, the American Repertory Dance Company, and John Ka'imikaua's halau -- all at the Hawaii Theatre, 1130 Bethel St., downtown (tel. 808/528-0506; www.hawaiitheatre.com), Hawaii's Carnegie Hall of the Pacific, still basking in its renaissance following a 4-year, $22 million renovation (it was built in 1922). The neoclassical beaux-arts landmark features an original 1922 dome, 1,400 plush seats, and a hydraulically elevated organ. Breathtaking murals create an atmosphere that's making the theater a leading multipurpose center.
Other smaller theaters on Oahu are: the Manoa Valley Theatre, 2833 E. Manoa Rd. (tel. 808/988-6131; www.revaserve.com/mvt), Honolulu's equivalent of Off Broadway with well-known shows performing; Diamond Head Theatre, 520 Makapu'u Ave. (tel. 808/733-0274; www.diamondheadtheatre.com), hosts a variety of performances from musicals to comedies to classical dramas; Kumu Kahua Theatre, 46 Merchant St. (tel. 808/536-4222; www.kumukahua.com), produces plays dealing with the island experience, often written by residents; Army Community Theatre, Richardson Theatre, Fort Shafter (tel. 808/438-5230), offers revivals of Broadway musicals; and Leeward Community College Theatre, 96-045 Ala Ike St. (tel. 808/455-0385), puts on an eclectic slate of productions, from visiting performing companies to local students' work.
The Honolulu Symphony Orchestra has booked some of its performances at the new theater, but it still performs at the Waikiki Shell and the Neal Blaisdell Concert Hall (tel. 808/591-2211; www.honolulusymphony.com), Hawaii's premier performance center for the best in entertaining. This arena/concert hall/exhibition building can be divided into an intimate 2,175-seat concert hall or a 8,805-seat arena, serving everyone from symphony goers to punk rockers. The Symphony is in house from September to May and then the highly successful Hawaii Opera Theatre takes to the stage from January to March. In its 44th season (past hits have included La Bohème, Carmen, Turandot, Romeo and Juliet, Rigoletto, Aïda), the Opera still draws fans to the Neal Blaisdell Concert Hall, as do many of the performances of Hawaii's four ballet companies: Hawaii Ballet Theatre, Ballet Hawaii, Hawaii State Ballet, and Honolulu Dance Theatre. Contemporary performances by Dances We Dance and the Iona Pear Dance Company, a strikingly creative Butoh group, are worth tracking down if you love the avant-garde.
Showroom Acts & Revues--Showroom acts that have maintained a following are led by the tireless, disarming Don Ho, who still sings Tiny Bubbles and remains a fixture at the Waikiki Beachcomber hotel supper club, 2300 Kalakaua Ave., at Duke's Lane (tel. 808/923-3981; www.donho.com). He's corny as hell but attentive to fans as he accommodates their requests and sings nostalgic favorites. He's also very generous in sharing his stage with other Hawaiian performers, so guests are often in for surprise guest appearances by leading Hawaiian performers. Ho has an 8:15pm show on Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday, which costs $52 including dinner, $32 for just cocktails. Also at the Waikiki Beachcomber is the nightly performance of The Magic of Polynesia (tel. 808/971-4321), a show with illusionist John Hirokana at 8pm, dinner $69, cocktails $42.
Across Kalakaua Avenue in the Outrigger Waikiki on the Beach (tel. 808/923-0711), the Society of Seven's nightclub act (a blend of skits, Broadway hits, popular music, and costumed musical acts) is into its third decade, no small feat for performers. Shows are Tuesday through Sunday at 8pm; dinner costs $50 and cocktails only is $35.
Still sizzling in the Polynesian revue world is the Sheraton Princess Kaiulani's "Creation -- A Polynesian Odyssey" (tel. 808/931-4660) in the hotel's second-floor Ainahau Showroom. Produced by Tihati, the state's largest entertainment company, the show is a theatrical journey of fire dancing, special effects, illusions, hula, and Polynesian dances from Hawaii and the South Pacific. The dinner show, held Tuesday and Thursday through Sunday at 5:15pm, costs $63 for dinner, and $33 for just cocktails.
The best in comedy is Andy Bumatai and Augie T, who perform "local" stand-up sketches that will have you not only understanding local residents, but also screaming with laughter. Currently they are playing on Wednesdays, 8 to 9:15pm, at the Brew Moon Restaurant, in the Ward Centre, 1200 Ala Moana Blvd. (tel. 808/593-0088), with a $10 cover charge, and on Saturdays at 8pm, at the Waikiki Beachcomber Hotel (tel. 808/392-9343). Another excellent comic is Frank Delima if he's playing anywhere on Oahu, it's worth the drive to see this comic genus, who sings, dances, and performs comic routines that will have you laughing until your sides hurt.
Luau!--Regrettably, there's no commercial luau on Oahu that comes close to Maui's Old Lahaina Luau, or Hawaii Island's legendary Kona Village luau. The two major choices on Oahu are Germaine's (tel. 808/941-3338; www.germainesluau.com) and Paradise Cove Luau (tel. 808/842-5911; www.paradisecovehawaii.com), both located about a 40-minute drive away from Waikiki on the leeward coast. Bus pickups and drop-offs in Waikiki are part of the deal.
Germaine's tries awfully hard and is a much more intimate affair than those legendary shows, but the experience is not as complete. Cost for Germaine's is $53 per adult, $43 for 14- to 20-year-olds, and $31 for 6- to 13-year-olds, including tax and transportation. The shows are held nightly from 5:30 to 9:30pm.
Paradise Cove, too, is a mixed bag, with 600 to 800 guests a night. The small thatched village makes it more of a Hawaiian theme park, with Hawaiian games, hukilau net throwing and gathering, craft demonstrations, and a beautiful shoreline looking out over what is usually a storybook sunset. Tahitian dance and ancient and modern hula make this a fun-filled evening for those spirited enough to join in. The food is safe, though not breathtaking: Hawaiian kalua pig, lomi salmon, poi, and coconut pudding and cake, as well as more traditional fare. Paradise Cove is extremely popular because of its idyllic setting and good entertainment quality. Tickets, including transportation and taxes, are $60 for adults, $50 for ages 13 to 18, $40 for ages 4 to 12, and free for those 3 and under. Shows are held nightly from 5 to 8:30pm.
Film--A new 16-theater megaplex has opened in the Victoria Ward entertainment center, at the corner of Auahi and Kamakee streets, and the Windward Mall's 10-screen megaplex is also bringing celluloid to the masses more conveniently. This makes Honolulu's movie scene a galloping sprawl of more screens, more seats, and more multiplexes than ever before.
A quick check in both dailies and the Honolulu Weekly will tell you what's playing where in the world of feature films. For film buffs and esoteric movie lovers, The Movie Museum, 3566 Harding Ave. (tel. 808/735-8771), has special screenings of vintage films and rents a collection of hard-to-find, esoteric, and classic films. The Honolulu Academy of Arts Theatre, 900 S. Beretania St. (tel. 808/532-8768), is the film-as-art center of Honolulu, offering special screenings, guest appearances, and cultural performances, as well as noteworthy programs in the visual arts.
In the university area of Moiliili, the Varsity Twins (tel. 808/593-3000), at University Avenue near Beretania Street, specializes in the more avant-garde, artistically acclaimed releases. The Kahala Mall's Kahala 8-Plex (tel. 808/593-3000) and Kapolei Megaplex, a 16-theater complex (tel. 808/593-3000), once the biggest movie theater complexes on the island, are eclipsed by the 18-screen Dole Cannery (tel. 808/526-FILM), Nimitz Highway and Pacific, the pineapple king of celluloid.
At the nine Wallace Theatres (tel. 808/263-4171), on Restaurant Row near downtown Honolulu, free parking in the evenings, discount matinees, and special discounted midnight shows take a big step toward making movies friendlier and more affordable.
In addition, Waikiki has a multi-screen IMAX Waikiki (tel. 808/923-IMAX), 325 Seaside Ave., featuring the larger than life, 3-D, IMAX films.
