Makawao Cemetery History Theater
July 27th and 28th 2024
{Space is Limited}
The 2024 Season Features Portrayals of
We bring history to life with carefully researched and scripted actor portrayals of figures from Hawaii's history. This year the three featured persons are Henry Perrine Baldwin - (buried at Makawao Cemetery) helped to found what is now Alexander & Baldwin (1870) and Haleakala Ranch (1888), William Ladd - involved in planting the first commercial sugar cane planation in Hawaii at Koloa, Kauai (1835), and James Campbell - with Henry Turton and James Dunbar, founded Pioneer Mill Company in Lahaina (1863).
Henry Perrine Baldwin (1842-1911) - Born in Lahaina to missionary parents Rev. Dwight Baldwin and Charlotte Fowler Baldwin. He attended Punahou School on Oʻahu before returning to Maui to become a farmer. His first plantation manager job was for William D. Alexander’s rice plantation. The plantation failed and he went to work for his brother’s small sugar cane farm. He worked as a luna at the Waiheʻe Planation, managed by his future business partner Samuel T. Alexander. In 1869 they began planting in Hamakuapoko on Maui. With reciprocity, the sugar industry grew quickly and he oversaw the construction of the Hamakua Ditch irrigation system. He oversaw the building of several mills on Maui such as the Hamakuapoko Mill, the Haiku Mill, and Paʻia Mill. In 1888 he helped to form the Haleakala Ranch. Alexander and Baldwin was officially incorporated in 1900 and is still an ongoing business today. He is buried at Makawao Cemetery
Portrayed by
Kevin Keaveney received his drama training at Yale University and spent 15 years as an actor in NYC where he was one of the founders of Outlet Theater Co., the arts collective Pathogen Arts, and the NY Strindberg Festival. On Oahu, he was the Artistic Director for Kailua Onstage Arts and has received several Po’okela Awards, as both an actor and a director. He has also portrayed Lorrin Andrews, William Richards, and Joseph Rock for Hawaiian Mission Houses’ Cemetery Pupu Theatre.
William Ladd (1807-1863) Born in Concord, New Hampshire, to John Ladd, a sailor who died at sea while William was young. He married Lucretia Goodale, a relative of Lucy Thurston, a missionary to Hawaiʻi. He sailed to Hawaiʻi with his friends and business partners William Hooper and Peter Brinsmade, arriving in 1833 aboard the Hellespont. They incorporated as Ladd & Company in 1833 and opened up a dry goods store at Honolulu Harbor. In 1835, the company leased over 900 acres from the government at Koloa, Kauaʻi to plant sugar cane. Koloa Plantation was the first attempt at a commercial sugar cane plantation in Hawaiʻi. Initially the plantation did well, but the business partners took on more and more debt to finance improvements to their sugar mill and to obtain more land. Attempting to shore up their finances Brinsmade went to Europe and struck a deal with the Belgian Colonization Company which fell through after the Paulet Affair of 1843. Ladd & Company closed their store in Honolulu in 1844. He is buried at Oahu Cemetery.
Portrayed by
Brandon Karrer is an experienced theatre actor who just a few years ago moved from Los Angeles to Hawaii. Originally from California Brandon spent years appearing on the stage in LA and San Francisco. He has studied at well known acting studios including the Janet Alhanti Studio, Howard Fine, The American Academy of Dramatic Arts, and the Ivana Chubbick Studios. Brandon recently has split his time between the stage and working as both a professional Voice Over and On-Camera actor. He is portraying William Ladd
James Campbell (1826-1900) Born in Londonderry, Northern Ireland, at the age of 13, he took a ship to Canda and met with his brother John in New York City, and worked as a carpenter. In 1841 he joined a whaling crew and was shipwrecked in the Tuamotu Islands. Making his way to Tahiti, he lived there for several years before making his way to Lahaina, Maui in 1850. He landed at Lahaina, Maui. In 1860, in partnership with Henry Turton and James Dunbar, he founded Pioneer Mill Company in Lahaina and in 1863 the company bought the Lahaina Sugar Plantation. The company was profitable and he used his proceeds to purchase land on Hawaiʻi Island and Oʻahu. He sunk the first artesian wells on the Ewa plain, which opened up leeward Oʻahu to more expansive sugar plantation operations. He also owned ranches at Honoʻuliʻuli and Kahuku on Oʻahu, becoming one of the largest landowners and wealthiest people in Hawaiʻi. He is buried at Oahu Cemetery.
Portrayed by
Christopher Denton Formally trained in theatre at Northern Arizona University, Christopher graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree of Arts in Theatre Performance. After two years living abroad in Japan, he returned home to Arizona to attend film school, before eventually migrating to Hawaii. He has also portrayed Nathaniel Emerson, William C. Parke, Charles M. Cooke, and Charles R. Bishop for Hawaiian Mission Houses’ Cemetery Pupu Theatre.
Production Credits
Director William Haʻo - Haʻo is a professional actor with stage credits that include 10 years in NYC and performances in almost every state in the union, in Canada, and Greece. He has performed in or directed all of Hawaiian Mission Houses’ Cemetery Pupu Theatre shows.
Costumer Maile Speetjens - Maile serves as Associate Professor of Costume Design/ Technology at the University of Hawaii at Mānoa. Originally from Kaua’i, Maile’s work in costumes has spanned from Boston to Hawaii and in-between. Recent works include Pagliacci (Hawai’i Opera Theatre), Conversion of Ka’ahumanu (Kumu Kahua), Twelfth Night (Lyric Rep), Peace On Your Wings (Ohana Arts), and ‘Au’a ‘Ia: Holding On (UH Mānoa Hana Keaka).
Kevin Keaveney (portraying Henry P. Baldwin) is this year’s scriptwriter
Mahalo!
We’d like to extend a special mahalo to the Fred Baldwin Memorial Foundation, Camille Lyons, Wendy Rice Peterson, the actors, and the staff and volunteers who continue to support programs like this!
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You are welcome anytime.
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