Part pep rally, part Pastor Wayne Cordeiro. Mayor Mufi Hannemann sure knows how to put on a rousing show.

The "State of Rail Transit" speech yesterday was a half-hour evangelism on the reality of rail, an affirmation that this is going to happen and it's going to happen now. At least at the live event, it was a sermon to the choir because attendance was by mailed invitation only. No would-be town-hall hecklers allowed. The taped half-hour show was televised to the public last night.

As the believers filed into the auditorium, the mayor's train playlist boomed over the sound system: "Last Train to Clarksville," "Locomotion," "Midnight Train to Georgia," "The Love Train," even some UB40 and 95 South train-related tunes. C'mon ride the train, ride it. It's hard not to tap your toe to that one.

The event opened with a slick video showing a local mom trying to get everybody fed and out the door on a weekday. Eggs, toast, coffee, nice Kapolei house, the mama saying wearily that she has to get up at 4 every morning to make it into town before the traffic. That is the price her family has to pay, she says, but it is too high a price.

Somebody say "amen."

Then comes the New Age happy music signaling the future. Hannemann appears on the screen seated on the magic train.He smiles and waves to happy passengers, including a girl carrying her surfboard and an old lady with a walker. A rainbow appears above the train. "This is not a virtual dream, folks, " Hannemann says on the video, and then he walks on stage, "this is our reality."

Hoo da slick.

Earlier in the day, the mayor held a rehearsal to make sure all the tricky technical elements went smoothly for the live speech. Of course it went smoothly. He's MufiHannemann. If he doesn't become governor, he can open a show in Waikíkí.

But did we really need the State of the Rail show? Will any nonbelievers be converted by this? Do they need to be? Voters already registered support for rail. Isn't it OK for there to be doubters and detractors and people asking tough questions?

The take-away message of all the slick staging was that rail is way past the "I think I can" phase and firmly on track to reality, let there be no doubt, come what may. The concession of an anticipated delay was slid in there toward the end, but followed by more talk of hope and commitment.

Everybody say amen. Or else.