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Do It! Andy Bumatai, Iolani Palace, more

SATURDAY, DEC. 22

Comedian Andy Bumatai returns to the stationary stage with fellow comics

Andy Bumatai, above, headlines a comedy show for the holidays Saturday at the Ala Moana Hotel, giving him a chance to get off the road.

Not “the road,” meaning touring. Literally “the road” as a path for driving. The comedian and host been extremely busy lately with the TV show “In the Car with Andy Bumatai.”

“It’s my primary focus now,” said Bumatai of the show, which airs at various times on OC16 and can also be viewed online. On the show, Bumatai and a celebrity guest ride around Oahu chatting about various and sundry topics. Bumatai and his son do most of the production work, setting up seven cameras in and on his car and editing the hours of video down to 18 minutes. “I always tell everybody in the car, ‘If you and I can’t be entertaining for 18 minutes, we gotta get out of the business.”

The Ala Moana Hotel appearance also features fellow comics Paul Ogata, Jose Dynamite and up-and-comer James Mane as emcee. It will let Bumatai work out his funny bone again, something he doesn’t always do on the TV show. “I don’t want to get somebody in the car and then always be joking, because then it becomes how funny can we be, and I’m generally a little better at it than most people because I do it for a living.”

He feels the pressure of being one of the island’s elder statesmen of comedy. After his talk show, “NightTime with Andy Bumatai,” was dropped, he said people told him, “That’s the problem with being at the front of the pack. You got all the arrows in your back.”

Bumatai’s happy to be sharing the stage with his fellow comics, including Ogata, who grew up in Pearl City and is now a regular on the national comedy tour circuit.

Ogata, Mane and Bumatai have worked together before.

“If you’re talking about somebody who you can throw a dart at a map of the world, and drop them off and they can do a killer show, well, that’s Paul Ogata,” Bumatai said.

As for Mane, “He’s like 6’5″, 450 pounds, Samoan, he’s huge,” Bumatai said. “And he gets up on stage and does the best first time on stage I’ve ever seen in my life.”

Where: Ala Moana Hotel, 410 Atkinson Drive
When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday
Cost: $30, $25 in advance from Honolulu Chocolate Co., South Seas Cycles and Podium Raceway.
Info: 391-5673

FRIDAY, DEC. 21

Get your head in sounds as end of world nears

If the world is coming to an end, you might as well celebrate it by rocking out at tonight’s Christmas Apocalypse edition of the monthly rock party Clampdown at Anna O’Brien’s.

Dec. 21 is when, according to various interpretations of the Mayan Long Count Calendar, a cataclysmic event will envelope the earth. More optimistic pundits, however, believe only that a spiritual transformation will take place.

And with Christmas coming up a few days later, there’s plenty of reason to enjoy the 11 alternative rock bands that will take the stage from 8 p.m. to 2 a.m.

Josh Hancock, a member of the punk group 86 List, organizes shows at Anna’s regularly, usually bringing three or four bands.

“This one is kind of like a blowout, an end-of-the-world party,” he said. “We’re going to put up a bunch of bands in case the world blows up; then we’ll have at least one big hoe-down before it all ends.

“It’s pretty diverse. … Dr. Zaius! is, like, a surf-rock band. Mark Prados and his Enablers is a blues band, and VeJJ is also a blues band, so we’ve got mellower stuff and then punk bands like Extra Stout.”

Other bands scheduled are Pimpbot, pictured, 86 List, Lions Keep, Never Enough, Koga, Raised by Wolves and ODM. All will play short, 20-minute sets to get as many acts on stage as possible before it all goes kaput.

The performance is a benefit for the China Town Music Studio, a community space for rehearsing and recording run by musicians. Bands in the show are all members.

Where: Anna O’Brien’s, 2440 S. Beretania St.
When: 8 p.m. today
Cost: $7; for ages 21 and over
Info: annaobriens.com or 946-5190

WEDNESDAY, DEC. 26

Rare after-dark tours offered at Iolani Palace

Visit Iolani Palace in all its royal splendor for rare evening tours Wednesday.

The palace, built in 1882 by King Kalakaua, is usually open only during the day, but these tours are being offered to commemorate the Dec. 31 birthday of Queen Kapiolani, celebrated a few days early.

In honor of the queen, the palace is offering another rare treat: music and performance in two rooms inside the stately residence.

In the Blue Room, soloists from Hawaii Opera Theatre’s Mae Z. Orvis Opera Studio, a program for young opera singers, will perform.

In the Throne Room, period dance performances will re-create the atmosphere of a court celebration from the Hawaiian monarchy.

The palace itself will be decorated as it was during the 19th century, with lanterns lighting the building and its grounds and golden electric light bulbs brightening the stateroom. Treasures of the Hawaiian monarchy, including jewelry once worn by Queen Kapiolani and Queen Liliuokalani, and other rare artifacts will be on view.

Where: Iolani Palace, 364 S. King St.
When: 5:30 p.m. Wednesday; last ticket sold at 9:30 p.m.
Cost: $10 adults, $5 children (children under 5 free, but limited to basement galleries). No advance purchase.
Info: www.iolanipalace.org or 522-0822
Note: The palace will be closed at 3 p.m. Wednesday to prepare for the evening events.

FRIDAY, DEC. 21-SUNDAY, DEC. 23

Hawaii State Ballet highlights holiday with ‘Nutcracker’

This weekend provides your last chance of the year to get your fix of “The Nutcracker,” the ballet staple of the holiday season.

Hawaii State Ballet, directed by John Landovsky, has five final performances at the cozy Mamiya Theatre on the Saint Louis School campus. Landovsky has picked his most advanced dancers for major roles in the ballet, including 17-year-old Lily Foster, who competed this year in the International Ballet Competition-Varna, considered one of the most prestigious competitions in the world.

“She’s ready for the big time,” Landovsky said. “She’s already good enough to join a company.”

Zoltan Boros, formerly of the Hungarian National Ballet and now with the Columbia Classical Ballet in South Carolina, performs as the Cavalier, the primary role for male dancers in “The Nutcracker.”

Landovsky’s version of “The Nutcracker” is a fast-paced production but includes all the familiar dances and the story of Clara, a little girl who receives a nutcracker as a Christmas gift and subsequently is transported to a dream world of dancing sugar plums, mouse warriors and toy soldiers come to life.

“It’s different in a lot of ways in that the pace is a little faster, and it’s kind of bright,” Landovsky said. “It has a lot of color to it, and there’s lots of energy.

“It’s also very intimate because of Mamiya Theatre, which means people who watch it can really get into it because it’s so close. … Kids especially like it because they can really get into it. Children, they have a ball.”

Where: Mamiya Theatre, Saint Louis School, 3142 Waialae Ave.
When: 7 p.m. today, 3:30 and 7 p.m. Saturday, 1 and 4:30 p.m. Sunday
Cost: $18-$38
Info: hawaiistateballet.com or 550-8457