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264 pp. August 2002

paper, ISBN 978-0-8248-2539-3, $24.00

Keywords: Hawaii
theater
literature
textbook
Hawaii Nei: Island Plays

by Victoria Nalani Kneubuhl

Talanoa: Contemporary Pacific Literature

"Kneubuhl's plays dramatize, in exciting and intriguing ways, some of the birthing pains inherent in the attempts of contemporary Hawaiians to find our place in this redefined world [during a time when the Hawaiian Renaissance is flourishing]." --The Contemporary Pacific, Spring 2004 (Download full review)

"Kneubuhl's work represents the very best of indigenous theatre. Collectively, these three plays reveal complex and fascinating insights into the author's culture, its history, and its contemporary articulations. Each play is written with verve and wit and has a sure sense of theatricality." --Helen Gilbert, University of Queensland

Hawai`i Nei brings together three plays by one of Hawai`i's finest playwrights. A compassionate portrait of early nineteenth- century Hawai`i, "The Conversion of Ka`ahumanu" charts the lives of five women during the traumatic, transforming events that followed Western contact. Set in post-World War II Hawai`i, "Emmalehua" tells the story of a young Hawaiian woman struggling to preserve a cherished cultural heritage in a world eager to forget the past and embrace the new American dream. Through history, humor, and a whodunnit plot, the past and present collide in "Ola Na Iwi," which explores the issues surrounding the treatment of indigenous human remains.

Victoria Nalani Kneubuhl lives and works in Honolulu. Her many plays have been produced in Hawai`i and North America and have toured Britain, Asia, and the Pacific. She is a recipient of the Hawai`i Award for Literature.




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