The latest effort to provide more evening family entertainment in Waikīkī involves two longtime companies: a Canada-based entertainment juggernaut and a Hawaiʻi-based hotel chain.
The Conversation talked to Sean Dee, executive vice president and chief commercial officer for Outrigger Resorts & Hotels, about the company's plans for a Cirque du Soleil show at one of its Waikīkī properties.
The production will reportedly focus on the story of Waikīkī and Hawaiʻi, and employ local musicians and performers. Dee said Aaron Salā and Manaola Yap are some of the many Hawaiian creative forces behind the theatrical project.
"The story will be told through a Cirque du Soleil lens — we'll have the acrobats and the humor and the beauty that they're known for — but all with a very, very strong sense of place rooted in Hawaiʻi," Dee said.
The Cirque residency will take over the 20,000-square-foot theater on the fourth floor of the Outrigger Waikīkī Beachcomber. The hotel is spending millions to remodel the 800-seat space to host Cirque for a multi-year run.
"Our commitment to Cirque du Soleil when we signed the agreement is that we would deliver them a literally brand new state-of-the-art theater as if it's literally coming out of the ground," Dee said.
Outrigger plans to turn the theater over to Cirque sometime in June or July so the show can install set design, sound equipment and more.
Dee said Outrigger wanted to develop a show that appeals to tourists and residents alike, adding that there will be a kamaʻāina discount program.
"We're super excited, obviously Cirque's a global brand. And we talked about the type of investment that we wanted to make in the showroom. We said it has to be first class, it's got to be, you know, an iconic partner — and Cirque came to mind to us very early," Dee said.
"It took a long time to negotiate a deal, but we're happy that we did, and we're excited to bring Cirque du Soleil Hawaiʻi to life December of 2024. I like to say we're on schedule, and we're on budget," he told HPR.
The project was first announced in April 2023. The local architecture firm G70 is leading the renovations.
This interview aired on The Conversation on Feb. 27, 2024. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m. on HPR-1. Sophia McCullough adapted this story for the web.
