Young Kaneohe actor makes his Broadway debut in 'The Lion King'

Dec. 20—Ezekiel Kekuna became the latest local kid to grace the Big Apple's biggest stage, making his Broadway debut Dec. 5 as Young Simba in "The Lion King."

Ezekiel Kekuna became the latest local kid to grace the Big Apple's biggest stage, making his Broadway debut Dec. 5 as Young Simba in "The Lion King."

"My first performance and my first week was great and went well, and I had this rush of adrenaline on stage, " the Kapunahala Elementary School sixth grader said. "Just seeing the audience and the big stage with all the props and all the costumes was very exciting to me."

The opportunity—which Ezekiel said is like a dream—required two online auditions and a coaching session, and culminated in an in-person final callback in New York.

Ezekiel found out the good news soon after the last stage of his audition process, where he sang his song and was asked about what his favorite part about Hawaii was, to which he responded, "No pollution or car honking."

On the walk back to their hotel from the final callback, Ezekiel's mother, Sarah, got a call from the show's casting director.

"(The casting director ) and I had a little conversation about how I was doing good and how I was great in the final callbacks, and she said, 'I have bad news, ' so I think my expression on my face went from happy to 'Oh no, '" he recalled. "Then she said, 'I guess you're going to have to get used to the pollution in the air, cars honking and people smoking. Do you know where I'm going with this ?' and I said, 'I think so.' Then she said, 'Congratulations, you got the role as Young Simba on Broadway !'"

"Me and my mom were crying and bawling our eyes out, and we were hugging each other so tight. I was going through a roller coaster of emotions, " Ezekiel said. "I literally went back to our hotel and was like, 'Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh !'"

For Sarah, her son debuting on Broadway "really was never a plan or even a dream, " but rather a chance opportunity.

"We just feel very grateful for this blessing and for this opportunity, " she said. "Our kids have just grown up in the theater and just have truly loved performing arts, and this opportunity just happened to come along."

This role is far from the Kaneohe native's first—his roots lie in the I'm a Bright Kid Foundation's summer program, which he has participated in every year since 2018, and in 24-VII Danceforce studio.

Most recently, he performed as Fletcher in Diamond Head Theatre's "The Bodyguard."

Ezekiel's ties to the local theater community run deep — both of his older siblings are involved in the I'm a Bright Kid Foundation and 24-VII as well. His mother, Sarah, also trained under Ronald E. Bright, former Castle High School drama teacher and namesake of the I'm a Bright Kid Foundation, and also danced for 24-VII. He said that his mom is "probably where I got my passion and interest for performing arts."

"It's really this Bright Kid family and this 24-VII family. Everyone is so close and so supportive, " Sarah said. "They're not just important to Ezekiel, but they're a part of our family and important to me as well."

Members of these "families " also helped to prepare Ezekiel for his final callback—fellow Bright Kids Kimee Balmilero and Miguel Cadoy ran lines and helped with his singing before his fateful flight to New York.

Balmilero, who was a member of the Original Broadway cast of "Mamma Mia, " said she "can't imagine " what it feels like to perform on Broadway at Ezekiel's age.

"A lot of people don't get to make a Broadway debut, " Balmilero said. "It's just so great that he's experiencing this now, and anyone that gets to see him, they'll see right away that he belongs."

But beyond the technical skills, the values infused into Bright's teachings also proved invaluable.

"Mr. Bright always instilled in us to always just be kind and be good people, and to always do your best. He always took this art seriously, but he also always made us feel loved and supported in anything that we did, and that's what we try to teach our children, too, " Sarah said.

Ezekiel's family and friends were present in the audience throughout his first week — including his mom, his grandparents, and friends from his Bright Kid and 24-VII families.

Bright's grandson, who lives in New York, was also able to attend and represent the Bright family at Ezekiel's debut performance—something Sarah said was "extra special."