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TWO NAILS, ONE LOVE

WRITTEN BY Lee A. Tonouchi
based on the novel by Alden M. Hayashi
January 22 – February 22, 2026

Ethan Taniguchi is a recently single gay man living in New York City when his estranged mother from Hawai‘i pays an unexpected visit, forcing him to confront their complicated relationship. “Anxious Ethan” is the Pidgin-speaking voice of self-doubt that haunts Ethan as he and his mother unravel painful family history: her incarceration during World War II and subsequent deportation to Japan as part of a little-known hostage exchange in which the United States traded its own citizens for whiter Americans held abroad. Will Ethan finally be able to understand the woman who is his mother, and will she be able to understand him in return?

LOIS-ANN YAMANAKA’S BLU’S HANGING

Adapted for the stage by R. Zamora Linmark
MARCH 26 – APRIL 26, 2026

A Hansen’s Disease survivor begins to lose his grip on reality as he mourns the death of his wife, while struggling to provide for his three children in an environment of economic dearth, educational lack, and sexual predation. The eldest child, Ivah, is offered a lifeline when a compassionate teacher helps her apply to a private boarding school. Learning that she has been accepted, Ivah must decide whether staying, or leaving, will best allow her to care for her father and siblings.

MEMORY BEADS

WRITTEN BY DIANE AOKI
MAY 28 – JUNE 28, 2026

Joni knows that Alzheimer’s Disease runs in her family and she fears it will take hold of her mother, and herself. To counteract this, she collects “memory beads” — her family’s immigration story from Okinawa, anecdotes her mother shares about growing up in Hilo, histories unearthed in a family genealogy, and narratives of her own journey toward self-acceptance and empowerment. Collectively, we see that the relationships between mothers and daughters through five generations are the cords that tie these “memory beads” together.