"Ms. Kamitaki constructs the play with a sure sense of place and character. She is a native Hawaiian but that is not the sum of her understanding of how a vanishing way of life affects the people who don’t want change. She is not afraid to let Wally and Becky appear funny, occasionally ridiculous even, trusting that we will appreciate them for their indelible humanity and love." Stage and Cinema
EXTENDED
A volcanic eruption threatens the Chaves's land in rural Hawaii. Will they come together to adapt and survive before it's too late?
When his daughter Charlene brings her girlfriend home for a vacation, Wally Chaves is surprised to find her different from the girl he remembers. He is taken aback at her modern, mainland lifestyle as well as her refusal to support his latest venture: a coffee farm in their backyard. His determination clashes with her resistance, both to the coffee and her rural Hawaiian roots. Faced with the threat of an impending lava flow and his family’s insistence that he retire, Wally must embrace a new vision for his future, or risk losing everything.
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"Once again, Playwrights’ Arena gives the stage to a promising new LA playwright. And with Southernmost, it once again illuminates a previously unknown — but nonetheless important — corner of American life." Theatre Ghost
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"WOW! Audiences can rest assured that while Southernmost is in town, eighty minutes of entertaining, engaging theater are a sure bet on the Playwrights’ Arena stage."
Stage Scene L.A. -
"The locale of “Southernmost" is as compelling as any character in Mary Lyon Kamitaki’s entertaining new play."
Los Angeles Times
- Starring: Amielynn Abellera, Kimberly Alexander, Aaron Ikeda, Alberto Isaac, Sharon Omi
- Producer: Henry 'Heno' Fernandez
- Associate Producer: Giovanni Ortega
- Dramaturg: Luis Alfaro
- Scenic Designer: Justin Huen
- Lighting Designer: Lily Bartenstein
- Sound Designer: Jesse Mandapat
- Costume Designer: Mylette Nora
- Stage Manager: Letitia Chang
- Casting Director: Raul Staggs