Weekend Offers Music, Shopping and a Spelling Bee Show

By Vanessa Wolf

Triskaidekaphobics take heart: you are not alone in your fear of the number 13.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt would not travel on the 13th day of any month and would never host 13 guests at a meal. Napoleon and Herbert Hoover were also triskaidekaphobic, with an abnormal fear of the number 13.

Superstitious diners in Paris can hire a quatorzieme, or professional 14th guest.

Lastly, and perhaps most damning, Mark Twain once was the 13th guest at a dinner party. A friend warned him not to go.

“It was bad luck,” Twain later told the friend. “They only had food for 12.”

Presuming you make it through this particular Friday the 13th in one piece, here are some of the better things going on this weekend.

Best Way to Feel Irie

Groundation and The Abyssinians. Courtesy image.

Tonight in the MACC’s Yokouchi Pavilion Courtyard take in the reggae sound of Groundation with special guests The Abyssinians, Father Psalms and Rootz Revealerz.

Promoters report that “Groundation captures the essence and drive of true roots reggae, the internationally-renowned band takes the art form to new heights by blending elements of jazz, funk, salsa, fusion and transcendental dub in a progressive amalgam of sound. Though they are based in California, Groundation’s music is closely intertwined with the roots of Jamaican reggae.”

Hailing from Jamaica, The Abyssinians are a roots reggae group formed in 1968 and best known for their harmonies and promotion of the Rastafari movement.

Gates open at 6 p.m. and special guests Father Psalms and Roots Revealerz start the show at 6:30 p.m.

Tickets are $35 in advance and $40 the day of the show.

VIP tickets are $70 in advance and $75 the day of the show.

Best Chance to Support Local Theater

Spelling Bee cast. Top: Ashlyn-Jade Aniban, Isaac Rauch, Kisha L. Milling, Gary Shin-Leavitt, Justin House, Scott Smith; Bottom: Christina Sutrov, Lily Marceau, Jeff Brackett Courtesy image.

“The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” Opens at the ProArts Playhouse in Kihei tonight at 7:30 p.m.

This Tony Award winning musical comedy was described as “‘A Chorus Line’ with pimples” by the New York Times.

Promoters explain that the plot involves “six adolescent outsiders, overseen by grown-ups who barely managed to escape childhood themselves, learn that winning isn’t everything and that losing doesn’t necessarily make you a loser even when they’re vying for the spelling championship of a lifetime.”

“The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” features Maui talent including Kisha L. Milling, Gary Shin-Leavitt, Scott Smith, Justin House, Christina Sutrov, Jeff Brackett, Lily Marceau, Ashlyn-Jade Aniban and Isaac Rauch.

The show opens tonight and runs two weekends until Dec. 22. It then returns after the New Year for two more weekends: Jan. 3 through Jan. 12. It plays Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m. (No show on 12/14.)

Tickets are $25 with discounted kama’āina nights are scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 14, and Thursdays, Dec. 19 and Jan. 9.

Call 463-6550 for tickets or more information.

Best Excuse to Eat and Run (or the Other Way Around)

Valley Isle Road Runners is hosting the Christmas 10K and Vineyard Street Mile races at 7:30 a.m. tomorrow, Dec. 14.

The run starts at the Wailuku Municipal Parking Lot off of Vineyard Street in Wailuku.

A potluck will follow the race.

Entry in the race is free for Valley Isle Road Runners with active club memberships. The event is also a food drive for the Maui Food Bank, canned goods and monetary donations will be accepted. To join VIRR and register for the race visit www.virr.com.

Race number pickup will be on the morning of the race from 6:30 to 7:30 a.m.

Drivers in the area are asked to use caution and be alert for runners on the road from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m.

Best Way to Shop and Give Back

After the race, head over to the Women Helping Women Holiday Bazaar.

Shop for holiday gifts, goodies, handmade crafts, jewelry, plants, edibles, spa products, skin care and more. Also, food including a Hawaiian Lau Lau plate by Hosino ‘ohana and a Dry Mein bowl and bento by the Benavidas family will be available.

The bazaar runs from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and proceeds benefit Women Helping Women, Maui’s domestic violence emergency shelter and programs for victims of domestic violence.

Best Way to Get Into the Holiday Spirit… Hawaiian Style

Willie K. Courtesy image.

Saturday night in the MACC’s Castle Theater, enjoy Willie K and his band.

According to the MACC, “multiple Na Hoku Hanohano Award-winner, guitar virtuoso, gifted vocalist and prolific songwriter, Maui-born Willie Kahaiali`i, aka Willie K, is famous for his extraordinary live performances. Expect the unexpected with this eclectic and versatile musician: his repertoire encompasses everything from island sounds to world music, rock’n’roll, blues, opera, musical theater … you name it, he can do it – and he excels at it all!”

Gates open at 5:30 p.m. for special pre-show festivities, including live music, Hawaiian arts & crafts vendors, lei stands and food.

Also enjoy music and hula in Yokouchi Pavilion before the show: music by Kawika Ho’opi’i & Friends and hula by Na Maile Ku Honua.

Willie takes the stage at 7:3p p.m. and tickets are $12, $28, $35 and $45.