“Family Laundry” will be staged on Sept. 25 at 12:30 p.m. at the Maui Myth & Magic Theatre in Lahaina.

WAILUKU — An adapted version of the original play “Family Laundry” will be staged at Maui locations in August and September.

“Family Laundry was written by the late local Playwright Tremaine Tamayose and staff members of the Kamehameha Schools Safe & Drug-Free Schools Program. It was originally produced by Kamehameha Schools in 1993 and performed by a talented group of professionals — all of Hawaiian ancestry — for more than 10,000 people statewide. 

It is a musical, a comedy and a drama about a local Hawaiian family and their struggle to deal with a family member’s alcoholism. 

The title of the play, “Family Laundry,” stems from the viewpoint of “never airing the family’s dirty laundry” or letting the family problems become public. 

The play shows, however, that sharing the family’s secrets can be an act of courage, particularly when it comes to alcohol and drug problems. 

“Family Laundry” is directed by Cyndi Mayo Davis, who originally played the role of Lehua. She will portray this role again alongside a stellar cast of local talent and professionals, including two staff members from the Neighborhood Place of Wailuku.

The play will be performed free on Aug. 20 at 7 p.m. at Helene Hall in Hana, Aug. 27 at 7 p.m. at Kamehameha Schools Maui in Pukalani, Sept. 3 at 7 p.m. at Lanai High School, September 10 at 7 p.m. at the Mitchell Pau‘ole Community Center on Molokai, and Sept. 25 at 12:30 p.m. at the Maui Myth & Magic Theatre in Lahaina. Contact the Neighborhood Place of Wailuku (NPW) at 986-0700 for more information.

As Maui County continues its efforts to prevent underage drinking, the play gives a powerful message of how a family’s beliefs concerning drinking can strongly influence a child’s own beliefs about alcohol use and abuse. 

According to NPW, it is an extremely important message, since recent statistics show that the majority of underage drinkers get their alcohol from older friends and family members.