Jo Diotalevi, 59, stage actress, puppeteer in children's theater

By Vicki Viotti
Advertiser Staff Writer

Jo Anne M. Diotalevi, an actress and puppeteer best known for her work in children's theater on O'ahu and the Big Island, died Thursday in a traffic accident in South Hilo. She was 59.

Police said Diotalevi apparently lost control of a Toyota vehicle that struck a guardrail and overturned on Akaka Falls Road near Honomu.

Investigators said she was not wearing a seat belt, and speed is believed to be a factor in the crash.

She came to Hawai'i after earning her bachelor's degree in education from Bridgewater State University in Massachusetts, said her longtime friend Terry Nevin. She taught drama at Kailua High School and then earned her master's degree in fine arts in improvisational theater at the University of Hawai'i.

Diotalevi also was active with Honolulu Theatre for Youth and Hawaii Performing Arts Theatre (now called Manoa Valley Theatre) before moving to the Big Island in 1979, Nevin said.

On the Big Island she performed in various productions before founding Jubelieve Productions, which most recently produced shows using puppets and music to teach children about environmental protection.

Lee Stetson, a former Honolulu actor who helped to found HPAC, said Diotalevi "very quickly gravitated to a Hawaiian ethic, and many of her works reflected environmental themes."