Mission Houses hosts Shakespeare performances

HONOLULU PULSE STAFF / honolulupulse@staradvertiser.com

The Hawaiian Mission Houses continues with its first theatrical performances on the new Ho’okipa outdoor stage as “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” wraps up two weekends of performances on Friday, Aug. 31, and Saturday, Sept. 1 at 553 South King St.

Directed by Cecilia Fordham, the play features a real Hawaiian spin on William Shakespeare’s classic — utilizing the lush outdoor stage and costumes made by Peggy Krock, performances combine backdrops of rural Honolulu with the lush green countryside of Haleiwa and an imaginary fairy kingdom to create a world of timeless romance, myth, and magic.

Fordham said Shakespeare often wrote plays without having a distinct emphasis on time and place. Wanting to make the play more Hawaiian, Krock created costumes that incorporate malos for characters like Lysander and Demetrius. Townspeople in the play are dressed in palaka prints. Fairies are dressed in costumes with specks of small lightbulbs.

Background music also has a Hawaiian touch to it, with musicians like Karen Valasek (who plays Hippolyta) and Ian Vlasek both acting in the play and later stepping aside to perform with their instruments.

Tickets for “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” are $20 general admission, $16 for students and seniors. Performances start at 7 p.m. each night; the Mission Houses will open its grounds at 5 p.m. to allow for sunset picnics on the lawn before the show. Chairs and lauhala mats are provided, but the public is welcome to bring their own mats, chairs and blankets as well.

Click here for more information and to purchase tickets online, or call Lisa Solomine at 447-3926. All of the proceeds from performances will help fun educational programs and operations.