Kumu Kahua Theatre Presents The Hawaii State Premiere Of “One Of The Best Plays Of The Off-Broadway Season” (And Winner Of 8 Obie Awards!), The Romance Of Magno Rubio By Lonnie Carter
The Romance of Magno Rubio by Lonnie Carter, will play at Kumu Kahua Theatre, 46 Merchant Street in downtown Honolulu, running from March 13th through April 13th, 2008.
Kumu Kahua presents the Hawai`i premiere of an award-winning play based on a short story by Carlos Bulosan, a migrant worker in the Depression-era California canneries, who became a respected writer and activist. The Romance of Magno Rubio was originally produced by the
Ma-Yi Theater Company of New York, where it won 8 Obie awards (the ultimate award for off-Broadway plays). Set in a bunkhouse for migrant Filipino farm workers, the play tells the story of Magno Rubio, an idealist and dreamer who is both admired and taunted by his fellow workers. Nick, the resident intellectual, narrates Magno's long-distance courtship (via letters) of Clarabelle, an Arkansas woman he meets via a lonely-hearts magazine. He sends her jewelry and money. Has Magno Rubio found true love? How do we define happiness or measure love? The play poses these questions while also dealing with the larger political issues of stoop labor and racism. Parts of the play are written in rhyming verse and set to music. The New York Times called The Romance of Magno Rubio, “One of the best shows of the off-Broadway season”.
Kati Kuroda will direct the production, with set design by Elizabeth Harwood, lighting design by Abel Coelho, costume design by Dusty Behner, sound design by Stu Hirayama, and
Lynne Nohara is the stage manager. The cast features Kumu Veterans Troy Apostol, Lito Capina, Cheyne Gallarde , MJ Gonzalvo, and Kumu newcomer Wayland Quintero.
Tickets for The Romance of Magno Rubio are sale now, and may be purchased with a credit card by calling 536-4441, or by visiting our box office between 11am and 3pm, Monday through Friday. Ticket prices range from $5 to $16.
Kumu Kahua Theatre is an air-conditioned, intimate 100-seat performance space; Patrons are strongly advised to purchase tickets in advance as individual performances do sell out. Performances are at 8pm Thursday through Saturday, and at 2pm on Sunday afternoons. Thursday, Friday & Saturday 8pm: March 13, 14, 15, 20, 21, 22, 27, 28, 29; April 3, 4, 5, 10, 11, 12, 2008. Sundays 2pm: March 16, 30; April 6, 13, 2008
For more information about this and other productions, or to purchase tickets online, visit www.KumuKahua.org.
The Romance of Magno Rubio is being supported by a grant from the Hawai‘i Council for the Humanities. Kumu Kahua productions are also being supported by the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts, celebrating more than thirty years of culture and the arts in Hawai‘i (with funding from the National Endowment for the Arts); the Mayor’s Office of Culture and the Arts, Mufi Hannemann, Mayor; and Foundations, Businesses and Patrons.
