'Dragonfly' visually stunning but long

By Joseph T. Rozmiarek
Advertiser Drama Critic

In "On Dragonfly Wings," Chrissy Naruo plays Little Wendy, who tries to bring excitement to life below the surface of her pond. 'Ohia Productions 'On Dragonfly Wings' Musical by Lisa Matsumoto and Roslyn Catracchia Produced by 'Ohia Productions 7:30 p.m. tonight through Saturday; 4 p.m. Sunday Hawaii Theatre $15-$40 528-0506

It features yards of yellow and black fringe that respond well to vigorous shakes and shimmies, bumps and grinds.

It is, in other words, a highlight in the revamped version of "On Dragonfly Wings," which opened last week at Hawaii Theatre.

The opening comes almost exactly two years after a premiere production at Leeward Community College in 2001.

The new version cleans up some of its focus problems, but overall its strengths and weaknesses continue to balance out.

The product of local collaborators Lisa Matsumoto (book) and Roslyn Catracchia (music and lyrics), the show was inspired by 3-year-old Alana Dung's struggle with leukemia and resulting efforts to register bone-marrow donors.

Matsumoto first published the story as a children's book, "Wailana the Waterbug."

At heart, it's a children's piece that addresses the problem of dealing with the premature death of a loved one and the uncertainties of an afterlife. Mostly, the allegory of a little water bug transformed into a dragonfly is a good choice to give voice to the issues.

Little Wendy (played by Chrissy Naruo) is the sparkplug that brings some excitement to life below the surface of the pond. Her primary success is to organize a parade that brings excitement and pride to an otherwise bland existence.

But she falls ill and begins "the change" that takes her into the uncertain realm above the surface. Once there, she is introduced to her new self by a guardian (John Bryan) and is reunited with Dora Dragonfly, her real mother, (Mary Gutzi).

After a brief, "Our Town" backward glance at the family she left behind, Wendy is once again promoting parades and happiness.

The current version clears up some of the original confusion created by two sets of parents by balancing auntie and uncle figures in the pond with a "real mother" in heaven. It also neatly divides the acts into under- and above-water experiences.

But the production remains too long, especially for children, and over-produces a single sentence plot line into three hours of production numbers, including "Bee All That You Can Bee."

Other production numbers feature outsized "Lion King" puppets, colorful costumes, lush recorded music and pinpoint firefly lights. Everything is wonderful, but having it all results in loosening our belts and checking our watches.

Still, the show is filled with visual excitement from Hugh Hanson's anthropomorphic costumes, a double-decker set originally designed by Joseph Dodd, and Ka'ohi Yojo's expansive choreography.