Source: Maui Time, Maui News, Best of Maui, Maui Activities

Picks%20of%20the%20Week

by Starr Begley

April 17, 2008

Love your Mother

Saturday and Sunday (Apr. 19-20)various times and locations

[EVENT] I’d like to say that “Earth Day is everyday,” but on this island we’re celebrating it over the weekend. There are two really big, really different events that celebrate our big ol’ swirling planet of mostly water: Earth Day at the Maui Nui Botanical Gardens and the Earth Day Festival at Baldwin Beach. Both are free and Earth-friendly, but other than that they couldn’t be more different. The Sixth Annual Earth Day at the Botanical Gardens takes place on Saturday, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., and focuses on cultural activities and conservation of the things that make Hawai‘i so very special. George Kahumoku Jr. and Uncle Richard Ho‘opi‘i will perform along with three different halaus. There will be kappa, cordage, lei making, poi pounding and spear throwing. Of course, there will be lots of good grinds and conservation organizations to fill the opu and mind with good stuff. The festival at Baldwin Beach happens Sunday from 10 a.m. till sunset. There will be live music, speakers and performances, environmental and social awareness booths, keiki activities and lots of food. There will even be a helicopter photo at 3 p.m. with the intent to get the message out that we really need to stop global warming, like, yesterday. For more information on Saturday’s event visit www.mnbg.org or call 249-2798. For more information on Sunday www.mauiearthday.org or call 572-6929. [STARR BEGLEY]

Crazy for Coco

Saturday (Apr. 19) 7:30 p.m.,McCoy Studio Theater, MACC

[STAGE] You may have seen Miss Coco Peru, the hilarious L.A. drag damsel, on TV late one night while watching reruns of Will and Grace or Arrested Development, or else in films like Girls Will Be Girls (for which she won awards for best actress AND best actor!) and To Wong Foo, Thanks For Everything, Julie Newmar, in which she played her saucy self. While she sparkled in all of these performances, nothing is quite like a live, personal Coco experience. She sings, dances and tells stories with incredible vivacity that audiences laugh, cry and think. In her new solo show, called Ugly Coco, she tells the moving and yet still funny story of her transformation from boyhood to draghood, asking the question, “Can a drag queen save the world?” Anyone who can manage to look unbelievable in a pair of size 13 heels certainly has a shot. Tickets: $20. 242-7469. [Jessica Armstrong]

Hapa and a half

Saturday (Apr. 19) at 7:30 p.m.,Castle Theater, MACC

[MUSIC] This legendary music posse is half slack key guitar master and Hawaiian language song composer Barry Flanagan, half Nathan Aweau—the unbelievable, multi-talented Hawaiian musician—and half `oli (or Polynesian chant) guru Charles Ka`upu. Yes, Iknow that makes a mathematically impossible three halves, but I think that might be what makes their contemporary Hawaiian sound so unique and flavorful. In fact, you could say their music has been dubbed “the sound of Hawai`i” since they put out their self-titled debut album back in 1993 and won six Na Hoku Hanohano awards, making it the biggest Hawaiian language album by a group or duo in the history of the awards. Yeah, they’re kind of a big deal, but only if you’re in to a tantalizing, inspiring union of Hawaiian sounds, acoustic American folk rock and spiritual ancient chants. Tickets: $38, $27, $10. 242-7469 [JA]

20 Years of Dance

Saturday and Sunday (Apr. 19-20) at 7:30 p.m. Sat., 3 p.m. Sun. at the Performance Studio, Seabury Hall, Makawao

[DANCE] I can’t believe that it’s already time for the 20th Annual Dance Showcase at Seabury Hall. This year, there will be 60 performers under the direction of dance program director David Ward. This year’s theme is “reflections of the past;” according to Ward, it will be a “retrospective journey of past works that were highlights of the program over the years.” The show also runs Fri & Sat. Apr. 25-26 at 7:30 and Sun. 27 at 3 p.m. Tickets: $11 adults, $9 Seniors, $5 Students. For more information and reservations call 573-1257.

Sweet Stuff

Thursday (Apr. 24) 7:30 p.m. at the Castle Theater, Maui Arts and Cultural Center

[Performance] Honey is rare. Not in quantity, mind you, but in the fact that it’s a food product that is intensely sweet, good for you and never goes bad. Sweet Honey in the Rock–an African American female vocal group –is similar in the sense that there’s nothing quite like it. The last time they were on Maui was back in 2002 and the audience loved them (hence the early warning for those of you who don’t have tickets yet). These women blend sounds found in gospel hymns with influences of jazz, rap and reggae for an experience that’s pretty much indescribable. The women in the group aren’t just musicians, composers, arrangers, singers and storytellers, but poets and activists, too. Tickets: $40, $25, $10. For more information www.mauiarts.org or call 242-7469.