Tui Scanlan and Ong King Arts Center Presents: The Devil and Billy Markham

By George D’range

Photos by Ronnen Zilberman

“I will crucify you all!” proclaimed director Tui Scanlan, when I asked him to comment on his up-and-coming production of Shel Silverstein’s The Devil and Billy Markham, currently showing at Ong King Arts Center. Tui also plays the Devil himself and adapted this bawdy poem for the stage. And despite any fond childhood memories one might have about Shel Silverstein’s work (The Giving Tree), this is a decidedly adult tale, originally published in Playboy Magazine.
The Devil and Billy Markham can probably be best described as one part Faust, one part Dante’s Inferno, with a liberal sprinkling of Larry Flynt thrown in for humor and raunchiness. The basic premise is of two-time loser Billy Markham, (Newcomer Sylvan Gaskin) gambling with the Devil on Music Row in Nashville in a high-stakes, winner-takes-all sucker’s game. The dice are loaded, the desired roll is thirteen, and the stakes are of course fame and fortune or Billy’s soul, to be paid I full, immediately upon losing. As messed-up as that may sound, it only goes from bad to worse, as Satan continues to tempt, taunt and torment Billy with more gambling prospects, further denigrating the already damned Billy Markham. In the process, Billy gambles away everything, or rather everyone he ever loved for the chance at freedom from Hades. When at last Billy finally gets Satan’s goat, one would expect this Nashville nobody to have learned his lesson. No such luck, because Billy has none, you see.
Billy is continuously tempted in the earthly realm, and even dares to cross cue sticks with the Almighty himself, on a wager of course. Without revealing anymore than I already have about this increasingly vulgar and hilarious comedy of sins, I can tell you that it actually continues to get worse before it gets better. Actually, scratch that, it doesn’t get better, at least not for Billy and his arch-nemesis, Old Scratch. If you like the idea of seeing the Devil get screwed, (in the figurative sense) you might just enjoy this tale, but if you are easily offended, it might be best to keep your distance. Mr. Scanlan takes his role in this play very seriously you see, and will most likely suffer no religiously biased comments from the peanut gallery. When it comes to salacious and irreverent comedy, Tui Scanlan is dead fucking serious. But as the expression goes, “Better the Devil you know…”

The Devil and Tui Scanlan

Think you’re bad? Think you’re dark? Meet Tui Scanlan, AKA the antagonist in his own production. Truth be told, not to undermine the other players that make this production possible, Tui makes the play, Tui is the play. At about 6’4”. wearing a size 18 shoe, he makes for an intimidating figure, and If I didn’t know him, I really wouldn’t want to run afoul of him. But there is a subtle constant smirk on his face that tell you that a different punch is coming, and you will fall down… laughing. This combined with an almost innate sense for this kind of villainous, yet jovial role makes for a great M.C., which essentially the Devil’s bit in this comedy. This role requires a generous helping of kolohe, and he even went so far as to infer that he did not so much choose the role, as the role chose him.
It also helps that the director is no stranger to this tale. As I myself am no stranger to this cast and crew, it was never my intention to critique or review, as much as to give some background and program information on this production, and allow the theater-going public to make up their own minds about it. So let us begin with the most unclean instigator of this Faustian feast, Little Horn himself,
Actually, to those who know him, Tui’s a hell of a nice guy, if a bit Machiavellian in his tastes, and he elected to present this play as his thesis in stage performance in college, although for various reasons, the deans decided he could not both present and perform in this particular play. They also said he could not submit this presentation in Nationals, which Tui decided to do against their “better” judgment, and took second place. He asserts that he could not take first due to the aforementioned raunchy nature of the material. This irony of Tui’s success is that he expelled for his insubordination, although he had also placed first for best performance in Arthur Miller’s The Crucible.
And the actual selection of this play turned out to be a fluke, as when the dealine was drawing near, Tui’s girlfriend at the time returned from the local bookstore with a copy of a book entitled, Oh Hell in hand, the contents of which were two poems, including Shel Silverstein’s The Devil and Billy Markham.
During Christian “See” Ellauri’s production, Hip-hopalypse, there was talk around Ong King that Tui would be presenting the next play, so I went online and found a transcript of the poem in order to get caught up with the scene, hoping to get an inside scoop on the production. I have to admit, it’s been a wild ride, and Hell has never been so much fun! Watching the seedling of sneak previews and the open rehearsal grow into the confident, slathering three-headed hound of Gehenna has been an experience in itself, and makes me anxious to participate in underground, guerrilla theater or performance art. And make no mistake, this is true underground theater, not unlike Taurie Goddess’ Cruel Theater, but with less audience participation, or deliberate emotional discomfiture.

The Hounds of Hell

While this play admittedly cast mostly of newcomers, a few of the ensemble have previous experience in performance of some kind, such as Harumi “The Hymn” Ueda, (portraying the role of God in Billy Markham), played the role of “Dune” in Hip-Hopalypse. It is clear from my experience with these people that they were all cast for their individual charismatic personalities to fit the roles for which they were chosen. Sylvan Gaskin is a hard working and dedicated jack-of-all-trades, who always appears slightly world-weary, but it’s only fatigue, and behind that is also an extremely humorous and thoughtful person. Ashley Yamaguchi and Ayme Ueda were also well chosen for the respective roles of Billy’s true love, and Ayme as his daughter. One of the theatrical bright spots in this performance comes from an unexpected source in the personage of John Leon Guerrero, who gives a great performance as Scuzzy Sleazo, a gambler’s pimp, or “promoter” as the character sells himself. This is role key in recruiting Billy for the job of shooting pool with the Lord.
But as I said before, it is probably best to decide for yourself if this play is up your alley, so a sneak preview can be had at http://www.youtube.com/OngKingLive. Unfortunately, it was necessary to cut a date or two from the original schedule, so by the time this is published there will be only two dates remaining: Friday November 9th & Saturday the 10th. This may be a controversial and obscene bit of theater, but if you like to see the Devil get boned, and his horns dulled instead of honed, you may well enjoy the Hell out of this play’s resolution.

The Devil and Billy Markham
Nov. 9 & 10, 8:00 PM, $10 at the door only.
Ong King Arts Center, 184 N. King St.

First Fridays @ Ong King Arts Center

Article by George D’range

(Published, abridged November issue, The 808 Scene Zine)

It’s a scene not to missed; worth the price of admission to see some of the most unusual and talented acts in town. This last First Friday hosted a very interesting group of performers, including the house act, the band “Quadraphonix”, among many other eye-popping and thought provoking arts and artists.
First Fridays at Ong King, not unlike any of the other galleries in town —save the fact that it’s not mostly landscapes and nudes— is a fest for the eyes; This month the walls of my favorite venue boasted the art of Ryan Greenly, and Eugene Kristopher “Ukarest” Menor. These two artists both clashed and complimented each other in a way that is classic Ong King, and I myself saw many pieces by both artists I would love to own, were I not such a broke suckah! It was a feast of color and imagery on media both familiar and unlikely. From a hip-hop crucifixion picture in black ink and gold paint on corrugated cardboard (framed, of course) to a full wall graffiti mural, Ukarest has mad skills, and offers a prolific and wide collection. Ryan Greenly’s work is almost beyond description, so an example of my personal favorite will be offered in addition to what I can tell you. Ryan seems to like to take pieces of scrap wood, nail odd pieces together, and give glimpses into an odd and interesting imagination, reminiscent of the pop art of the early seventies with a twenty-first century flare that I find irresistible.
But then again, I have kind of weird tastes, and as I sat smoking a cig on the back porch, one Ong King regular remarked, “We’re all weird!” So I paraphrased Frank Zappa and Fred Frith, and responded to her, “Yeah, but we don’t think what we do is weird, and that’s the difference.” And that really is the defining difference of this special place. It actually is all good. I later remarked, while shooting a film of the guest book, ‘This is a free-though zone, not a thought-free zone. Many others have tried and failed.” This elicited an agreeable chuckle from DJ Joulz, so I knew it would have to go in the article.
But I’d like to give the M.C. and co-owner, See of Ong King the opportunity to say it for himself:
oNG KIng ARTs CeNtER’s is Chinatown’s art nurturing,
soul clapping, heart blossoming space. Its mission is
to make a sustainable art community. It is a space for
creative risk taking, and artistic mastery.... ...This
is a place of expression, a place to reveal, a freedom
to grow, to create and thrive. Every SuNDay night
9pm-1am the stage is OPEN. You have a something to
say? Music? Say it, sing it, share, listen, inspire
and be inspired. First Fridays is the big one night of
the month that is just all out. FFriday begins at
5pm-9pm with a new art opening, then from 9pm-2am is a
bang out, all out, show of theatre, music, dance, sLam
poetry, acrobatics, all happing on the same stage.
Live, happening, get in and bust out.
MOnday - ThUrsDay classes begin at 7pm. These classes
include, Qi-Gong, Bellydance, Ecstatic Dance, and
Swing Dance. Try something. Rent the space for your
own show, or celebration. KAVA Bar, MAte Bar, BYOB…
And that’s Ong King in a nutshell. A place for the different, those who look at a mainstream art gallery or coffeehouse and sigh, those who wish they could simply meet more folks like themselves.
And on the topic of the unusual, the mixture of entertainment at Ong King also leaves no stone unturned. Although you most likely won’t run across many punk acts at Ong King, that won’t stop you from meeting punks, performance artists, and against-the-grain folk singers, poetry slammers and the like. This First Friday had a wild mix of stage talent, J.P. & WuT were scheduled to be up first, but J.P couldn’t make it so WuT went on first, after a warm-up spin by D.J. Joulz. Delivering his unique style of guitar accompanied by sequenced rhythms controlled by pedal, what then strapped on a harmonica, and went old school with a bit of blues. Followed by WuT was Ari the Clown, a juggler and contortionist. After a humorous juggling act, proceeded to pass his entire body, head to toe, through a squash racquet. We were then treated to Flamenco Spanish dancing by Jamie (or Jaime?) of De La Isla Flamenco, a treat of pure culture and extreme beauty. Giinko Marischino then brought on their interesting variety of performance art and interpretive dance, accented by their impeccable sense of costuming. The ever present, aesthetically pleasing sound of Quadraphinix, who always get the dance floor moving —a band so dedicated, Jonathan, the drummer, and co-owner of Ong King temporarily checked himself out of the hospital to rejoin the fray— kept the groove of the evening moving. Then it was time for some very hip and always sensible rhymes of MC iNTREPiD, one of the players in the recent performance of Hip-hopalypse.
And then came the coup de tat of the evening, a teaser from Tui Scanlan’s up and coming play, Shel Silverstein’s The Devil and Billy Markham. This particular teaser was from the second chapter of this bawdy poem, entitled Billy Markham and the Fly, and it really looks to be a promising play, but as previously hinted at, this is no play for children. This is not The Giving Tree. Tui’s portrayal of the Devil seems as if it were written just for him, and he jests that he was indeed possessed to do this. As in literally. He had actually submitted this play as his thesis in college, (Chapman University, City of Orange, California) which they rejected. However, Tui was undaunted, and the public felt differently when he placed second in national competition. I asked Tui for a brief statement on his new play, and I suspect he was already in character when he exclaimed: “I will crucify you all!”
Well! Sounds like fun to me! I will be covering more on this play in a future article, solely dedicated to that topic.
Other inviting aspects of First Fridays at Ong King include the beautiful women across the road at Bad Sushi, and the presence of Licensed Massage Therapists like Daisy Maltese from the Orchid Room, working the knots out of tired muscles for the bargain rate of one dollar a minute.
Before I had to cut out and catch a bus around midnight, I was very fortunate indeed to catch the words and verse of the notorious Lee Knight, Jr! Now this was a slam poet I could feel from the gut. His poems, more bard-like self-explorations, hit me like a punch, and elicited real emotion. I now know I have to get a hold of this man’s works in print, and it should also be noted that he is a member of Caligula 6.

Lee Knight, Jr. can be found at:
http://www.myspace.com/leeknightjr —or— www.myspace.com/caligula6
Ginko Marischino can be found at:
http://www.myspace.com/maliama —or— groups.myspace.com/giinko
iTREPiD is at: http://www.myspace.com/soulkitchenrecords
WuT is at: http://www.myspace.com/wut
For other references, links and contacts, try the following URLs:
http://www.myspace.com/ongking
http://www.myspace.com/honestpuck
info or bookings: 306-7823, or 428-3233
—or— online @
http://www.ongking.com/

Hip-hopalpse: High Culture Meets “The Bomb”

Review by George D’range

(Published online)

I may not be an authority on hip-hop or rap. In fact, it’s or the most part, not of my generation. The last time I felt truly cool, I was into Jane’s Addiction, when they played at the Aloha Tower, before it was a shopping center. And I have precious little familiarity with the works of William Shakespeare. (Usually I have to watch a Shakespeare play twice and read it, to really absorb it) But the writer/director of Hip-hopalypse, Christian Ellauri (AKA, SEe) does have a mastery of these performance elements, the credentials to prove it, and his presentation of this odd mixture of ingredients is truly visionary.
Understanding and mastering iambic pentameter is difficult enough. Weaving it together with hip-hop, elements of “Stomp” and a surprising metaphysical angle was nothing short of inspired. Topping this tasty philosophical tale of humanity’s swan song are feats of acrobatics, martial arts, and interpretive dance that almost creates a sensory overload. Ah, there’s the rub. I wish I’d seen it more than once! The pace was both dizzying yet engaging, and I got the distinct impression that was part of the design. The troop does warn in the introductory scene, “Try to keep up!”
There are three aspects of this performance in which I do have a level of understanding, if not expertise: drama, post-apocalyptic novels, and metaphysics. These are also critical elements of the instant classic that is “Hip-hopalypse”, In the area of drama, I grew up with an actor (my stepfather), and my sister was a member of the cruel theater acting troop, and star of the play, “Double Above the Knee”., and got her start in the Mid Pacific Program for the Performing Arts, as well as appearing in the U.H. presentation of “The Vagina Monologues”. Post-apocalyptic tales in particular are a specialty of mine, (I’ve read everything from Vonnegut’s “Cat’s Cradle” to Stephen King’s “The Stand” 5 times) and as a Gen-Xer who grew up under the threat of the bomb, I found this to be a riveting setting for a play of this nature.
Even though the play is seeing it’s last performances this week, and this probably won’t be published in time to be a true spoiler, but I will defer to my friend See anyway, by not revealing too much, in case we should be so lucky as to have a future repeat performance. I personally feel he should take this one on tour.
The play opens as society has already crumbled, presumably from a nuclear exchange, with an introductory soliloquy from the former scribe, turned tribe leader, Dante (Tui Scanlan). We are given a very concise, yet head spinning blow-by-blow of the events past and present, which set the stage of the tale. The story centers on a tribe of survivors who must labor under back-breaking, and sometimes fatally hazardous conditions to mine enough coal, in order to refine drinkable water. The workers, as well at their beloved queen (Simone Derow) suffer from radiation sickness, are starving, and often succumb to their labors. Three MCs, bards of sorts, DO, Dune and Dewm (Jonathan Sypert, AKA intREPID, Harumi the HYmn, and Jason TOm) are tapped by Chief Dante to recruit fresh laborers from the wasteland to come and join the coalmining band. (Sorry for all the ebonic lettering folks, it came that way in the program. Not easy with MSWord constantly correcting me!)
As with any tribe, this band is not without it’s warriors, and two agile stick fighters, Essu, (Justin Young) and Juolian (Michael Hamilton) patrol the realm for wandering threats presented by other nomads. And they are out there. And by “out there”, I mean whack. Strange, mutated interlopers with mysterious healing capablilities roam the outland, seeming to survive on nothing but “The fruits of the desert” and the universal mantra: Ohm.
Intrigued? Good, because I may have said too much already, except that folk singer Christina Nelson also plays an integral part in this hip-hopalyptic opus magnum, and with all these elements thrown together, it made for an incredibly interesting and wonderful evening. Easily worth paying the extra five dollars to upgrade to a coach seat, as I have a bad back, and floor seats were ten.
Didn’t get a chance to catch it? Found other ways to spend your evenings, or just plain forgot? Do yourselves a favor, and get in touch with See at Ong King, and ask him to do that funky thing again! (More about how to do that at the end of the article)
And even if that doesn’t happen, definitely do yourself a favor and drop by Sundays from 9 PM to about 1:00 to 1:30ish, when the real party happens for only the price of one dollar’s ($1!) admission. There’s all you can drink Kava for five dollars, and sometimes other tasty treats for sale. OR, for the turbo-charged version of Ong King, hit them up on First Fridays each month for ten dollars’ admission. It’s well worth the money, just to be a part of the coolest place in town.
Many have searched for this seemingly mythical and illusive venue, so I’m going to explain it, and as See reminds us: “Try to keep up!” Where King Street meets River, at the end of China town, go to the Mauka side of King street. Now face Diamondhead. Walk about 15 to 20 paces, keeping your attention focused on the left. The wall of the street is collaged with waves and other psychedelic visions. You’re not seeing things! Well, I can’t speak for you, but I digress… There is a rather plain white sign hanging above the door to a stairwell reading “Ong King Arts Center” Go up the stairs and at the top, hang a hard right. You will see a red sliding door. If you are a Bohemian or free spirit, enter. You are home.

See and his associates can be reached at:
Ong King Arts Center
184 N. King Street
www.ongking.com
see@ongking.com
808-306-7823