John Berger

Christmas in Honolulu gets a boost starting tonight when Ballet Hawaii presents its big-scale production of “The Nutcracker” in the Blaisdell Concert Hall.

Kauai native Kaliko Kauahi returns to the small screen Monday in the second season of NBC’s “St. Denis Medical,” a mockumentary sitcom about the eclectic staff at an underfunded Oregon hospital.

This year’s “Black Friday” for shoppers will be Nov. 28, but it also will be a date to circle for fans of Hawaii’s musical traditions.

Imagination, artistic excellence and lifetime career achievements were celebrated in gala style tonight at the Hawaii International Film Festival HIFF45 Awards Ceremony & Reception at the Halekulani Hotel. HIFF adjudicator panels notably named multiple honorees or honorable mentions in the Made In Hawaii film categories.

Aspiring novelists and playwrights are often advised to “write what you know.” UH-Manoa Master of Fine Arts candidate Alison Bruce-Maldonado takes it to heart with “Dolls: A Toy Story,” the musical she’s created as her thesis project for a double degree in playwriting and directing.

Hawaii can bid a final aloha to Aloha Stadium on Oct. 25 with the “Aloha to Aloha Stadium” concert featuring Henry Kapono, Brother Noland, Ekolu, the Makaha Sons, Ho‘onu‘a, Tavana, Kanaka Fyah, the Hawaiian Style Band, Anuhea, Manoa DNA, and Kimie Miner.

Hawaii tourism officials are looking to harness the power of film to put a spotlight on Hawaii as a visitor destination, while creating a more authentic understanding of the islands and providing employment for local residents.

When Alan Akaka was growing up, a young musician in his teens and 20s in Honolulu, he played steel guitar with some of the top names in Hawaiian music. When they spoke, he listened:

Punky Pletan-Cross, who spent more than five dec­ades in community social service leadership on the East Coast and in Hawaii, where he headed Hale Kipa for nearly 24 years, died Aug. 5 in Honolulu. He was 77.

‘Fiji Tribute’ concert draws Kapena, Josh Tatofi and more