SHOW BIZ

By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Entertainment Writer

WHO'S NEWS: Karen Keawehawai'i plans to do her first concert for DVD and CD release, according to her husband, Jackie Farias, who produces her recordings. The venue and timetable are yet to be confirmed; however, Keawehawai'i got verbal agreements for a band, which performed at the couple's double graduation brunch for daughters Winona Farias and Melody Farias, on Memorial Day at the Marlin Room of the Pacific Beach Hotel.

Musicians Chris Kamaka on fiddle bass, Brian Tolentino on 'ukulele, Mel Amina and Bernard Kalua on guitars said they'd be available; they all previously worked with Keawehawai'i.

The cast would also include veteran Hawaiian troupers Auntie Mapu and Auntie Flo, who have added both prestige and comedy to Keawehawai'i's special shows, including the brunch. "I want them preserved," Farias said of documenting their contributions on DVD.

The pa'ina was distinctly family-oriented, with Tracie Farias Lopes and her dancer-educator husband, Keawe Lopes, also taking the stage — along with their two young daughters.

Keawehawai'i has been tapped for the Hawai'i Theatre's Hana Hou! Hawaiian series next season; this was confirmed by Burton White, theater manager and series producer, who was among the attendees at the celebration of the two University of Hawai'i College of Education graduates. Winona, who earned a master's degree, hopes to find a teaching job before pursuing her doctorate. Melody, who completed her bachelor's degree, has been a special-education teacher at Kailua Elementary School and is awaiting word on a fall position. ...

On the road: Keola Beamer, the prolific Maui-based singer-guitarist-composer, will be off to Amsterdam, Netherlands, tomorrow with hula-dancing wife Moana to premiere a cross-cultural collaboration with an Indonesian Gamelan Orchestra in the Hague on Wednesday. He's going early to rehearse. Beamer, a kingpin in things Hawaiian, especially ki ho'alu, is featured on a just-released CD with R. Carlos Nakai, a Native American flutist, called "Our Beloved Land," the tunes from which were earlier premiered for an enthusiastic Kennedy Center audience in Washington, D.C. ...

Because of his trip, Beamer will again miss the Na Hoku Hanohano Awards tomorrow evening. The event, delayed because of prime-time TV sweeps last month, will feature live performances by song of the year nominees as well as those with the most nominations: 'Ale'a, The Brothers Cazimero, Raiatea Helm, Frank Kawaikapuokalani Hewett, Keahiwai, Na Palapalai, and Owana Salazar. Brittni Paiva, the youngest nominee, will be paired with the senior of the crowd, Bill Tapia, and expect a segment on the Grammy-winning producer-guitarist, Charles Michael Brotman, who won the first Hawaiian Music Grammy earlier this year. ...

Helm will headline the Pan-Pacific Festival-Matsuri in Hawai'i celebration with a performance from 9 to 10 p.m. June 10 at the festival's ho'olaule'a at the Lewers Street stage. ...

Names 'n' faces: Camile Velasco, who will sing with Diana DeGarmo at the 50th State Fair tomorrow and Saturday at Aloha Stadium parking lot, performed an a cappella version of the national anthem last weekend in front of 35,000 at the Arizona Diamondbacks-Los Angeles Dodgers game at Bank One Ball Park in Arizona. She was very nervous, doing that difficult anthem without music, but the crowd loved her. ...

Liz Damon, who had a chart hit called "1900 Yesterday" back in the 1970s, will be making a special appearance here this summer. Damon, who fronted Liz Damon's Orient Express, will sing her signature tune in "'70s Salute to Our Troops," at 8 p.m. Aug. 12 at the Renaissance Ilikai Hotel. "I always look forward to going home and to perform in front of fans who remember the old days," said Damon, now a Las Vegas resident. The evening is a stroll down memory lane, with oldies groups such as the King Pins, Flashback and Greenwood taking the stage. Proceeds will support a homecoming celebration for Hawai'i Army National Guard members in the 29th Support Battalion. Tickets: $30 ($20 tax deductible), available through the Ilikai. Call 944-6372. ...

And that's Show Biz. ...

Show Biz is published Tuesdays and Thursdays. Reach Wayne Harada at 525-8067, wharada@honoluluadvertiser.com or fax 525-8055.