“Carnival of the Nearly Extinct Animals” brings critically endangered Hawksbill sea turtles, Kāhuli land snails and coral to life through music, dance and elaborate puppets on Friday, Sept. 18, and Saturday, Sept. 19, in Honolulu. While the show is three months away, tickets are on sale now.
The performances are being presented by Hawaiʻi Theatre and Ocean Music Action, a nonprofit that uses music to inspire care for the ocean.
“We're going to go to different communities and share our message and use it to promote conservation,” said Megan Conley, president and founder of Ocean Music Action. “But we're doing it in Hawaiʻi first, because we do have this culture of understanding and care — mālama ʻāina.”
The project is based on the famous suite, “The Carnival of the Animals,” by Camille Saint-Saëns, which was composed more than 100 years ago and consists of 14 short movements featuring different animals. Often, this music is paired with dance.
Conley connected with Stephanie Ann Boyd, a composer in New York who wanted to do a follow-up piece that focused on biodiversity loss and how much has changed since the original piece was written.
“She wrote her own piece that is the same format — it's 13 short movements — and each one, we're basically traveling across the globe, telling the stories of these different animals,” Conley said.
The music features tigers, polar bears, rhinos, bees, butterflies, sea turtles and even a blue whale.
“Coral is the central movement of her piece,” she added. “It’s right in the middle. We basically are using the piece to celebrate the beautiful diversity of life on our planet, but also raise awareness. These animals are endangered. And this is a point of action, so we get to decide: ʻDo we want to protect them? Do we want to save them and make sure they're here for future generations?’”
Musicians, dancers and puppeteers
The performance includes six musicians playing flute, violin, cello, bass, harp and percussion. Conley, who previously was the principal harpist of the Houston Symphony, will be on stage with her harp. And she will play alongside her husband, Shawn Conley, who is the principal bassist for Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra.
“You've got winds and strings and harp and percussion,” she said. “The music is very rich — a beautiful mix of timbres, but it's also small enough that people can really see who's playing what and what’s going on.”
There will be six dancers, three from Ballet Hawaiʻi and the rest from Dance Heginbotham which is based in New York, where Conley and her husband lived for 10 years before moving to Oʻahu, where he was born.
Actor Moses Goods, who recently appeared in the Apple TV mini-series “Chief of War,” will narrate the performance and recite poetry about endangered animals written by keiki, she added via email.
And then, there are the puppets. Greg Corbino is a New York-based artist who will travel to Oʻahu to create puppets for these performances.
“He’s going to come and build all of the puppets here,” Conley said.
Conservation is at the heart of the designs, she added.
“We're trying to address environmental issues, so all of his materials are recyclable,” Conley said. “We're not creating any trash, and when he leaves all of the puppets will be donated — either to schools or libraries. He wants them to continue to be used for educational purposes.”
While the performances address a heavy topic, there is more to it, she explained.
“Biodiversity loss is a serious thing, but we're really doing it in a way that is meant to just inspire joy and wonder,” Conley said. “It will be just a beautiful art experience.”
Opportunities to take action
The first ticketed performance will be at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 18. An hour before the show, there will be a pre-performance talk, which features local experts and shares insights about the animals spotlighted in the performance.
The following day, there will be a more keiki-friendly matinee performance, which starts at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 19. Attendees who arrive an hour early can participate in an instrument petting zoo, which is designed to introduce youth to classical instruments. There will also be a hands-on art experience.
Musicians, dancers and puppeteers will also give a free third performance just for public school students, she said.
“And then throughout the month of September, we have community engagement events all over Oʻahu that are designed for all different ages, different abilities,” she said. “So people can come to the show, hear about the animals, and then if they're inspired to get involved, we give them opportunities.”
The list of community events is listed on Ocean Music Action’s website. So far, the list includes free musical performances at public libraries in Waiʻanae and near Waikīkī, a Genki Ball making event near the Ala Wai, and nature journaling at Mānoa Heritage Center. Get tickets.
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Katie Helland can be reached at katie@alohastatedaily.com.
