OUR STORY
At the heart of MAPA’s mission of enriching individuals, building community and connecting our world through the performing arts is a deep belief in the power of the arts to transform individuals and create thriving communities.
MAPA has a long history of providing performing arts programming for the Maui community. It all began in 1974 when Linda Takita founded Maui Youth Theatre, an afterschool drama program for keiki that soon blossomed into a bustling academy benefitting thousands of Maui families. In 1990, the organization changed its name to Maui Academy of Performing Arts. Now one of the state’s largest nonprofit arts organizations, MAPA has served more than a million people over the past five decades who have participated in our highly acclaimed programs including theatre and dance productions, classes, camps, and arts residencies in the schools.
As a nomadic organization without a permanent home of our own, we’ve transformed a wide variety of spaces into temporary theatres, from outdoor fields and community centers to school cafeterias and restaurants. We’ve leased spaces to create our own performance venues, like Pu’unēnē Clubhouse, Kahului Community Center, and Steppingstone Playhouse. We’ve also rented performance venues such as ‘Iao Theater, Maui Theater, Seabury Hall’s Aʻaliʻikūhonua Creative Arts Center, and Maui Arts & Cultural Center’s McCoy Studio Theater and Castle Theater.
In 2016, we began the process of creating our own permanent home in the heart of Wailuku. The Main Street Arts Project is our new performing arts campus with dance studios, drama classrooms, rehearsal studios, support facilities, and The Naylor, a state-of-the-art black box theatre scheduled to open in late 2025. As a cornerstone of the emerging Wailuku Arts District, we are honored to play a role in revitalizing Wailuku through the arts.
As our story continues to evolve, we look to the past with gratitude and stand ready for the next exciting chapter of enriching individuals and building community through the performing arts.
MAPA’s Mission
enriching individuals, building community and connecting our world through the performing arts
“To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe.”