The challenge to become Huck Finn and Jim

By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Entertainment Writer

From left, Tom Holowach as The Duke; Sean Jones as Huck Finn; Steve Wagenseller as The King; and John Bryan as Jim in "Big River," which opens tonight at Paliku Theatre, Windward Community College. Brad Goda 'BIG RIVER' A musical by Roger Miller, with book by William Hauptman, based on Mark Twain's "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" and produced by Windward Community College Premieres at 7:30 p.m. today; repeats at 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 4 p.m. Sundays, through Nov. 7 Paliku Theatre, Windward Community College $26 general, $22 people older than 62 and military, $18 students and children 235-7433 or etickethawaii.com

"Huck is a character I can relate to — someone adventurous, like I am. That was the easy part," said Jones, a freshman at Mid-Pacific Institute. "But he's also unprivileged, deprived; he wants education, something that I've always had. In fact, I've always had what I've needed, something that Huck doesn't have. He feels empty; he has needs."

John Bryan, 39, is portraying Jim, the runaway slave befriended and aided by Huck in the musical based on Mark Twain's "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn," and it's possibly one of his most challenging roles because it's racially a perfect fit for the actor.

"I've been fortunate to play various roles over the years, including ones that weren't necessarily race-related," said Bryan, a Jamba Juice (Waikele) employee by day. "I tell my friends, 'Hey, I'm playing a Negro,' and they say, 'That's a stretch.' But it's kind of a double-edged sword; this is the first one where I play a black and I'm enjoying the experience because there is a certain responsibility to get it right, to play it no other way but from the heart."

Jones, a student at Mid-Pacific School of the Arts, still is a theatrical novice but is targeting a career in show business. "I've done a couple of shows at school, and played Amahl in 'Amahl and the Night Visitors," he said. "But I was eager to work with Mr. Bright (Ronald E. Bright, the director) because I've heard so many nice things about him."

He's discovered, firsthand, that "he's easy to talk to and great to work with; I'm never afraid to talk about problems with him, and he never makes anyone feel like you're a bad actor. It's been a great learning experience for me."

Bright, the retired Castle High School drama director to scores of theatrical graduates over the years, also has been an inspiration to Bryan.

"He's taught me everything I know," Bryan said. "He's my mentor; took me under the wings then, and has kept me there since. There's no difference in the way he treats adults and students. Because my family's not here, he is my life force here. And I'd like to do what he is — a teacher working with drama kids."

Jones, the son of musician Steve Jones, has seen a Huck Finn movie but has not read "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn," the Twain classic that introduces the irrepressible Huck, his pal and partner in crime, Tom Sawyer, and other denizens along the Mississippi River.

"I will find time to read (the novel) but not before the play opens," said Jones. "Right now, I'm juggling school and homework with rehearsals and performances, and I'm also a member of the Hawai'i Youth Symphony."

Bryan hasn't seen a production of "Big River" but recalls some of the characters from a 1973 "Tom Sawyer" musical film, including Jodie Foster, who played Becky Thatcher. "What I'm pleased about is that though Jim is from a work of fiction, he's sort of a real person; he's raw and responsive, so you can't hide behind the character. Jim was a man resigned to be owned for the span of his life; when the opportunity comes up, when he has help to be free, from a white person, he's like a child; it's like rebirth. He has to be played real."

Jones is hooked on theater, dance and music. "In order to do all three, I have to take a core class during the summer," he said of his educational regimen. He plays trumpet, has performed with the Honolulu Boy Choir and Diamond Head Theatre's Shooting Stars, so he's got his feet wet in his quest for a show-biz career. Among his community theater credits is DHT's "You Somebody."

"What I like about theater is that I can be someone I'm not — a different person," said Jones. "I like to bring a character to life, even if it's an imaginary life."

Bryan said his world is somewhat in a tizzy right now.

"I have no life, zero," he said. "I get up, go to work, go to rehearsal, go to bed, and the cycle starts the next day," said the 'Ewa Beach resident. "I'm also the vocal director for this production, so I have to teach the music to the others.

"But it's my dream to be involved in any show in some capacity as often as I can. It's been a fertile season, so far, with other opportunities down the line."

He rattled off upcoming productions like "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum," "Cabaret," "Seussical," "Miss Saigon" and "Aida."

He expects to help with vocal direction for "Aida," when Saint Louis School presents the Hawai'i premiere of the Elton John-Tim Rice musical at Mamiya Theatre.

"It's so gratifying when you work with students," Bryan said. "I would love to go back to school, to become sort of a theater teacher. And get paid for what you love."

Reach Wayne Harada at 525-8067, wharada@honoluluadvertiser.com, or fax 525-8055.