Play 'Our Okinawan Ohana' Wraps Oahu Run, Bringing Okinawan Immigrant Stories to the Stage
Honolulu is a city in Honolulu County, Hawaii (a consolidated city-county). On Oahu, in Honolulu, Hawaii, a play drawn from Okinawan immigrant history has wrapped up its run. "Our Okinawan Ohana," produced by PlayBuilders of Hawaii, has finished its Oahu performances, including shows on October 17 and 18 at Paliku Theatre at Windward Community College, and is expected to head to Maui in early 2027.
The play was written by Hawaii Poet Laureate Lee A. Tonouchi. PlayBuilders says the project gathered material through community story circles from November 2024 through July 2026 and conducted more than 40 individual interviews, with Okinawans, or Uchinanchu, sharing stories of immigration, plantation life, food, language and cultural traditions. The play explores the challenges Okinawan immigrants faced in Hawaii, along with the accomplishments and communities they built.
One character was based on Hawaii News Now reporter Jonathan Masaki, portrayed by actor Devon Izumigawa, in a scene where the fictional reporter asks people at the Okinawan Community Center about the differences between Japanese and Okinawan identity. Okinawans are an important part of Hawaii's Asian Pacific community. (GSM, based on Hawaii News Now and PlayBuilders of Hawaii)
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
