Too Much Hula? No Way
Too Much Hula? No Way.
April 22, 2006 / Honolulu Advertiser, Wanda A. Adams, Assistant Features EditorEDITH KANAKA'OLE STADIUM, Hilo, Hawai'i — Hula'd out? I thought I was until I got here last night and encountered the scent of plumeria and the looks on the dancers' faces and the ideas that still have the capacity to surprise and charm me even after four days of watching rehearsal, the Ho'ike performance and three nights of competition.
One thing that never ceases to amaze me is how it is that a particular color, style of costume or choreographic approach will suddenly appear in a cluster of performances, as though the kumu hula had been channeling the same creative source or something.
This year, the confluences included hula noho (seated hula); implements (especially the kala'au sticks, the 'uli'uli feathered gourd, the bamboo rattle and the 'ili'ili castanet stones); songs for and about Queen Emma; strapless gowns; touches of eyelet, lace and/or organza; and particular shades of green, peach, orange, periwinkle and lavender — did you notice the lavender grass skirts worn by Chinky Mahoe's women in their kahiko performance and the peacock detail on the feather rattles used by Rich Pedrina's kane?
In choreography, it was impressive to watch several halau work in extremely tight formations, their arms overlapping and almost moving as a single unit. In fact, a couple were so closely grouped that judge Kawaikapuokalani Hewett walked over to a position where he could actually see the position of their feet and check their lines. (I'd never seen this before, but it's allowed; judges and press photographers are the only ones allowed to be moving when a performance is going on.)
A number of halau showed a willingness to take risks with costuming, and move beyond the usual. As I write this, I'm watching Glenn Vasconcellos' wahine 'auana performance, in which the women dancing "Old Plantation" are wearing bonnet-like hats covered in orchids, each with a single feather floating jauntily as they move about. Earlier this evening, Keli'i Chang from Texas dressed his men in T-shirts and fatigue pants (which did NOT look comfortable to dance in) for a tribute to Hawai'i's active-duty military. Less successfully, Chang's women wore immense Spanish-style hair combs for their 'auana number; no one seemed to know what the connection might be to Hawai'i or the hula.
But the big tradition-breaker in costuming was clothing dancers in contrasting outfits. Kumu hula Snowbird Bento did it in her wahine kahiko number, set on Kaua'i in the time of Queen Emma, with each dancer wearing a different-patterned calico-print puff-sleeve top with a loose, gathered skirt in yet another fabric. This really worked; the women did actually look like a group of young ladies in waiting, accompanying their queen on a horseback outing. And Leina'ala Heine Kalama's young women wore different prints of the same dress design in all manner of bright colors for their 'auana number. There were at least half a dozen halau that took this route.
Exits and entrances are another area where kumu hula often express their individuality. My favorite of these was Manu Boyd's; the kumu himself danced in as he chanted the 'oli for his group's kahiko performance — and why should we have to wait for the ballot-counting, when the stage is open to all kumu hula, to see them dance? I know there is a tradition of hanging up your hula skirt once you 'uniki, but they are the source of all this knowledge, after all.
To paraphrase Robert Cazimero last year after winning the kane overall division, tomorrow is business as usual again, back to our pre-hula lives. Exhausted and burdened with Big Island Candies shopping bags, the sound of the pahu still sounding in our inner ears, we'll board our planes for home — but not before filling out the reservation forms for our hotel rooms for next year. Because planning for Merrie Monarch 2007 begins now.
Love and Aloha
Miss Aloha Hula credits the spirit of the classic romance she danced
April 22, 2006 / Honolulu Star Bulletin, Burl BurlingameBefore taking the stage, Bernice Alohanamakanamaikalanimai Davis-Lim of halau Na Lei O Kaholoku
closed her eyes in meditation.
She felt the spirit of a love-lorn ancient Hawaiian chiefess enter her. As the music started, she breathed deeply and opened her eyes, and from that point Thursday night, the Kohala dancer was the clear audience favorite to win the 2006 crown of Miss Aloha Hula at the Merrie Monarch Festival in Hilo.
Wearing a pure white dress and dancing with poised restraint, Davis-Lim often drew Beatlesque screams from the audience as dancers from other halau watched with rapt expressions.
Davis-Lim's first production was "Ho'ohiki Pili Aloha," a tale of unrequited love in ancient Hawaii that took place in Kohala. She danced to a minimalist metronomic beat that contrasted with the often grandiose music from other performers; she revved it up near the end.
Her second selection, in the auwana department, was Kawaikapuokalani Hewett's aching "Ka 'Eha A Kealoha," another love song.
Although Miss Aloha Hula is a solo award, it's a family affair. Na Lei O Kaholoku kumu Nani Lim Yap and Leialoha Amina are Davis-Lim's aunts; Amina's skills as a land-title researcher uncovered many stories about Kohala that touched the hearts of the halau, and Yap has coached Davis-Lim since she was a child.
"She's a veteran at solo hula," said Yap. "At 13 she won Miss Hula na Keiki on Maui. We'd actually been planning to take a little break from competing this year, but Bernice felt so strongly about this that we went forward.
"We love doing the research in creating a dance, to carry on the kahiko tradition. We always try to pick meles from where we come from, in Kohala. My sister finds the land documents that contain the background for the meles, and then we create the spiritual side and let that guide the creation.
"Our ancestors help us along. ... We feel truly guided."
It is not quite the classic hula epics of Hiiaka and Lohiau -- ancient Hawaii's version of Tristan and Isolde -- but there was an elegant simplicity and visual metaphor to the tale of Kohala's legendary chiefess Poliahu that appealed to the Kohala halau.
As the legend goes, Poliahu falls for Aiwohikupua, a chief from Wailua, Kauai, just as he is taking his leave of the Big Island. Aiwohikupua is so smitten that he wants to marry her immediately, but that is not to be. As symbols of their love, they exchange cloaks, his of feathers and hers of snow, which can be seen today nestling the high peak of Mauna Kea.
"I loved the story from the moment I first read it," said Davis-Lim. "I was consumed. I couldn't stop reading everything I could about Poliahu. It's such a good story."
"I was raised in Kohala. It's where my parents and grandparents are from. It's a very special place to me," said Davis-Lim. "When kumu Leialoha stumbled on the story of Poliahu, who was from Kohala, we knew it was a story we had to tell, because it wasn't well known."
Research provided names and places, and Davis-Lim made it a point to visit each site to absorb the area's energy.
"It helps your imaging to know exactly what happened, to walk where they once walked, as if they are walking through you."
This intense preparation made the performance an emotional experience.
"I didn't even see anyone in the audience. Apparently, my sister was right in front of me. I closed my eyes, and a presence took me to a different realm entirely. It was like Poliahu wanted to bring her story to life; it was playing like a movie in my head," said Davis-Lim, her voice still full of wonder the day after. "It was like I was meant for this purpose."
Her dress was as purely white as the driven snow, and that was on purpose. It represents the mantle of mountain snow that symbolizes Poliahu's love. Because of the traditional aspects, Davis-Lim preferred the kahiko portion of the competition, but thinks Kawaikapuokalani Hewett's lovely song "Ka 'Eha A Ka Aloha" was also perfect, because -- naturally -- it's about Poliahu.
"This is all very much about Poliahu," said Davis-Lim. "After I left the stage, I was grasped and told I did her justice, that Poliahu was very proud. But I knew, I knew. A weird chill went through the auditorium, telling us she was present -- it felt like a misty rain."
Davis-Lim, a hotel telephone operator in nonhula life, negotiated a leave of absence, would like to travel a little to share her hula but conforms she will always return to Kohala. Even during the Merrie Monarch, she and her aunties commute each day to Hilo from Waimea.
"Waimea is such a cute little town, it wraps around me like a warm blanket," said Davis-Lim. "It's like stepping back 10 years, to a time of no worries."
Davis-Lim was still in the afterglow of her performance and overwhelmed by shrieking noise from other contestants when it sounded like she had won third place. Pushed toward the stage, she dreamily accepted the drum trophy. "I was walking down the ramp, and they announced the actual name of the winner.
"I thought, wait, that's not my name. Oh my God! Then they came and said, 'Uh, that's not yours.' I freaked!"
She was recalled to the stage for the top honor a few minutes later. It will make a good story for her grandkids. Maybe not as good a story as that of Poliahu, but these are modern times.
Miss Aloha Hula finds 'The Zone'
April 22, 2006 / Honolulu Advertiser, Wanda A. Adams, Assistant Features EditorWhen the new Miss Aloha Hula talks about the snow goddess Poli'ahu and her lover, Chief
'Aiwohikupua, she sounds like she's talking about the kind of star-crossed couple we all know: People who love each other, but just can't make it work.
It is this — her intimate understanding of the ancient tale she interpreted in her kahiko and 'auana numbers Thursday night — that allowed Bernice Alohanamakanamaikalanimai Davis-Lim to find "the zone" during her performance, leaving behind all sense of the present to become the beguiled, abandoned and longing Poli'ahu.
"I was in another world," she said Friday morning, perched on a couch in a friend's Waimea home where Na Lei O Kaholoku is staying during the Merrie Monarch Festival. "I was exactly where the story was, playing the movie in my mind." Her sister is convinced Davis-Lim made eye contact with her during the dance, "but I didn't see anyone — I wasn't even there."
Afterward, she said, she cried with gladness. Davis-Lim is convinced that "the story was appreciated. She heard me. She saw me. She knew I told her story — Poli'ahu."
Davis-Lim, 21, is a member of the sprawling Lim family of Kohala. Her grandmother is matriarch Mary Ann Lim; her mother, former hula dancer Charmaine Lim Davis. Her proud dad, who Thursday night looked ready to burst as he watched her being interviewed on television, is William "Sam" Davis. The family lives in Waikoloa.
Mary Ann Lim said that as her granddaughter danced, she was thinking of "Papa," the late Elmer Lim Sr. "She was the apple of his eye," the elder Lim recalled. "His punahele (the favorite)," a cousin agreed.
The Lims are known alike for their popular singing troupe, the much-lauded halau taught by her aunts, Nani Lim Yap and Leialoha Lim Amina, and the number of awards the children and grandchildren have won in solo competition. Davis-Lim won the Miss Keiki Hula competition at Maui's Hula O Na Keiki competition in 1998, when she was 13 years old, a title her Auntie Lorna Lim had won before.
The Lims are also known for their devotion to their Kohala home, and their commitment to researching and sharing its stories.
The Poli'ahu story is typical. Amina has delved deeply into the snow goddess legend and found that it had rarely been fully told, and that it had an important Kohala connection: The couple pledged their love by exchanging her snow mantle for his feather cape after a canoe journey along the coast to Kohala. This was the story Davis-Lim interpreted in her kahiko number, which was written jointly by the kumu and their student.
In addition, Davis-Lim performed a contemporary song about Poli'ahu, written by Kawaikapuokalani Hewett (also a Merrie Monarch judge).
The story of the couple's elaborate wedding was the focus of the halau's group kahiko song last
night.
Davis-Lim said that, to her, hula means family first and foremost. "We may have our differences, but when it's time to hula, we're all in it together. It is what we have in common," she said.
Additionally, "it's a vehicle for expressing feelings that it's hard to express any other way," Davis-Lim said.
When she was working on her 'auana number, whose title means "the pain of love," Davis-Lim turned to her Auntie Lorna for help.
"It was difficult for me to grasp that — love and pain together," Davis-Lim said. She wasn't sure how to show the extremes without looking like a harlequin mask.
"Make it like a longing desire," her aunt told her. "The pain comes from the desire."
For Davis-Lim, hula became a "longing desire" early. She remembers hanging around the halau when she was too young to participate. Lorna Lim, youngest of her mother's sisters, then and now a frontline dancer for Na Lei O Kaholoku, was her idol. Davis-Lim would show up at Auntie's house many afternoons to receive informal instruction.
Later, people would say Davis-Lim danced just like Lorna.
Davis-Lim just wishes she'd inherited Lorna's voice as well. "I like to sing, but that doesn't mean I sing well," she said, with a laugh.
Like all Miss Aloha Hula candidates, Davis-Lim has had to put hula at the center of her life in recent months. She studied Hawaiian language for two years at the University of Hawai'i-Hilo, but gave it up because the halau travels so much. She had a job she loved at the Fairmont Orchid Hotel but resigned after her kumu hula chose her as Miss Aloha Hula candidate last summer. She has been something of a hermit the past few months, declining friends' invitations because she was in training.
Davis-Lim, who cheerfully admits that she's not a size 3 and never expects to be, says preparing for the Miss Aloha Hula competition has been a pathway back to good health for her, helping her shed pounds and strengthen her knees, which had begun to suffer when she packed on the pounds in college ("living in Hilo with Taco Bell open at 1 a.m."). But she's also happy to represent the dreams of normal-size women who fear to compete.
"I always told myself they would never let me win, that I would have to work harder and go over the top to have even a chance," she said. "There was a lot of hard work, but it was worth it, totally worth it."
Lim Family Triumphs Again
April 21, 2006 / Honolulu Advertiser, Wanda A. Adams, Assistant Features EditorNo matter what TV announcer Kimo Kahoano said, there was never a doubt: Bernice Davis-Lim outscored her closest competitor by more than 20 points to become Miss Aloha Hula 2006 at the Merrie Monarch Hula Festival Thursday night.
Her mother, Charmaine Lim Davis knew it: "The feeling was magical tonight. She was on a different level. Her performance was out of body, like."
Kahoano apparently got the wrong information, or misread the winner list and accidentally announced first and second place in reverse, resulting in a hubbub around the scorer's desk and no little embarrassment. But that all washed away in the tears of joy.
Davis-Lim, a member of the Kohala-based Lim family of music and hula fame, made the family prooud with a pair of dances that celebrated the love of the snow goddess Poli(okina)ahu for an earthly chief.
Here's the breakdown of winners of Thursday evening's Merrie Monarch Miss Aloha hula competition:
1. Bernice Alohanamakanamaikalanimai Davis-Lim, Na Lei O Kaholoku, Kohala, Hawai'i; kumu hula Nani Lim Yap and Leialoha Lim Amina; 1164 points.
2. Makalani Hanau I Ka Manawa Ua Kipalale Mai Kuahiwi Sarai Pukuna Himsa Franco-Francis, Halau Na Lei Kaumaka O Uka, Kula, Maui; kumu hula Napua Greig and Kahulu Maluo-Huber;1138 points.
3. Kapalai'ula Kamakaleiakawainui de Silva, Halau Mohala 'Ilima, Ka'ohau, O'ahu; kumu hula Mapuana de Silva; 1129 points.
4. Ka'enaalohaokau'ikaukehakeha Aoe Hopkins, Halau I Ka Wekiu, Honolulu; kumu hula Carl Veto Baker and Michael Nalanakila Casupang;1128 points.
5. Tatiana Kawehiokalani Miu Lan Tseu, Ka Leo O Laka I Ka Hikina O Ka La, Kapalama, O'ahu; Kaleo Trinidad;1122 points.
Office of Hawaiian Affairs Hawaiian Language Award: Ka'enaalohaokau'ikaukehakeha Aoe Hopkins, Halau I Ka Wekiu, Honolulu; kumu hula Carl Veto Baker and Michael Nalanakila Casupang.
Merrie Monarch: A 'Grounded' Miss Aloha Hula Competition
April 20, 2006 / Honolulu Advertiser, Wanda A. Adams, Assistant Features EditorHILO, Hawai'i — It's the year of the hula noho, the kneeling hula, the squat-walking hula, the-leaning-back-until-your-hair-sweeps-the-stage hula, the-leaning-over-until-it-seems-impossible-that-you'll-stay-upright hula. At least, that's the way it seemed during the kahiko portion of the 43d annual Merrie Monarch Festival Miss Aloha Hula competition Thursday night.
Of the first 10 Miss Aloha Hula candidates, six spent much of their time close to the ground, not only dancing while seated but also executing deep squatting and bending moves, drawing screams of admiration from a hula-savvy crowd that knows just what it takes to perform these moves — let alone to perform them with breath left over for trilling an 'oli.
After the athleticism, breath control and general power exhibited by the 16 women competitors, it's difficult to imagine what borders are left to cross. How can you best performances like that of Makalani Franco-Francis of Maui's Halau Na Lei Kaumaka O Uka? She chanted so strongly every word was audible, clicked 'ili'ili stones all the while to punctuate the moves of the dance and spent three-quarters of her time on stage on her knees, working from her stomach muscles instead of her feet — a trifecta of difficulty all but the most experienced hula dancers would quail to attempt.
Even in this most conservative of hula environments, where the judges are believed to frown on innovation, every performance illustrated how far hula has come from the mid-20th century days when hapa-haole ditties prevailed and a fresh grass skirt was the heighth of autenticity. In the depth of research that accompanies the learning of a dance, the skill of contemporary chant-writing, developments in costuming, instrument construction, lei artistry and every other art and craft attendant on a hula performance, the sophistication is startling. Kumu hula will tell you much of this modern-day work is inspired by the ancients — not just through such empirical means as newly translated Hawaiian language materials, but also in more mystical forms, through ideas that appear in dreams, during meditations or visits to historic places.
As I sit here during intermission, with people around me handicapping the competition, talking over who appears to them to have winner potential, I, too, am thinking about what makes a great hula performance. And it's not just technique or beautiful adornments or a good teacher — every one of the competitors here has those. It is the abillity to inhabit the story, to put on the characters and the action like a new skin. Of the dancers we've seen Thursday night, perhaps two were able to remain within the sacred confines of the mo'olelo for the entirety of their performance. These seemed to forget — and caused the viewer to forget — that it is a performance, an artificial construct, on a stage with annoying lights and photographers buzzing around and people who are rude enough to use cell phones while the show is on.
When this happens, when the dancer is serving the story, magic happens. And it's worth waiting for.
• • •
Back down to earth, a few things to report:
If you were watching on television, you may have noticed closed-captioning for the Merrie Monarch hula competition for the first time. It's now required by law. The closed-captioning is being handled for KITV by a firm in Maryland, which must be having an interesting time of it. All the scripted material was sent to them, but there is a great deal of ad-libbing by the announcers and commentators during Merrie Monarch, and it must be a challenge for a Mainland transcription expert to make sense of all those Hawaiian words and names. By the way, the law doesn't require that Hawaiian be translated, so viewers are on their own.
• • •
Don't know if the TV audience got this, but Kimo Kahoano gave the audience in the stadium quite a tongue-lashing about the use of cell phones after he noticed someone chattering away on camera during the first performance. He reminded everyone sitting in the area behind the stage that they are within camera range and then scolded, "After this girl came all the way from Texas, she is going to see you doing your cell phone trip while she is performing." The audience cheered.
Behind the Scenes at the Merrie Monarch
April 20, 2006 / Honolulu Advertiser, Wanda A. Adams, Assistant Features EditorWhat's new on the Merrie Monarch stage? I was struck by these sights last night:
• Na Palapalai sang a cappella onstage for Miss Aloha Hula candidate Kapalai'ula Kamakaleiakawainui de Silva of Halau Mohala 'Ilima. This was arresting for two reasons: Kumu hula Mapuana de Silva usually isn't one to break new ground, and the musicians usually perform all but anonymously, down in the musical pit at the rear of the stage. To bring them onstage, kumu de Silva had to take the risk that their unplugged performance might not come off — it takes strong voices to fill this cavernous, high-ceilinged place. But she made a good choice: Placing the musicians so close to the dancer, and leaving them unamplified, leant a lovely, relaxed party hula air to this auana performance. Kumu de Silva (yes, she's Kapalai'ula's mom) stood with the band, beaming, throughout.
• Two small things popped up in the dances of different halau. Several soloists skipped the kaholo (the characteristic, arms-out vamp that fills in between verses), instead pausing in an expressive position until the next verse began. Less successfully to my eyes, the choreography of several dances included a move that can only be called twirling — not the classic three-quarter turn or the "around the island" vamp, but a one-footed pivot that just doesn't look like hula to me. (But I admit that I'm little more than a party hula wanna-be.)
• In costuming, trends included strapless, princess-line dresses of classy simplicity for auana, often in satin or velvet, contrasting colored underskirts peeking out from under wider overskirts in both kahiko and auana and, in color, green, particularly a shade I'm tempted to call Martha Stewart green — the hue of a fresh spring lettuce.
• Among the hot topics in Hilo this week has been flowers: whether there'd be any in the aftermath of the long, rainy winter. This is important because faux flowers are not allowed in competition at Merrie Monarch and because the halau are required to employ flowers appropriate to the dance and to list the major adornments they will employ in advance in the detailed reports they provide for the judges. During Miss Aloha Hula, there was a huge amount of lehua — that being a flower that grows like a weed in Hilo — as well as the usual palapalai fern and maile. But there were also the elaborate floral hairpieces you expect in auana.
Merrie Monarch: Ho'ike, Happenings on Eve of Competition
April 20, 2006 / Honolulu Advertiser, Wanda A. Adams, Assistant Features EditorSome early morning reflections from the Ho'ike concert and Wednesday happenings at the Merrie Monarch Festival hula competition:
FA'A SAMOA
The hit of Wednesday night's free Ho'ike concert, the traditional kickoff to the hula competition, was not hula but a Samoan tradition that brought dozens of Islanders up onto the stage in a free-for-all like none I've seen at Merrie Monarch.
After a spirited and very well-received performance, Tupulaga O Samoa Ma Taeao, a troupe from the University of Hawai'i at Hilo, announced that their finale would be a ceremony that is generally carried out by the daughter of a chief.
Arrayed in full regalia (wrapped tapa sarong, fine mat skirt, towering tuiga — a headress of feathers and hair), and with her arms, legs and shoulders glistening with coconut oil, the young dancer playing the role of the chief's daughter was escorted on stage, a chanter boastfully announcing her, dancers bowing before her.
She began a shuffling, hand-waving dance that was subtle and dignified but somehow also coy and provocative. Soon, dollar bills were flying everywhere. You see, the object of this dance is to pay tribute — literally — by attempting to glue money to the dancer's oiled arms and shoulders. The crowd got into this one so enthusiastically that members of the security force had to hold back those lined up on the ramps for fear the stage would collapse under the weight of so many bearing gifts. Samoans in the audience joined the cast, dancing gracefully while the money frenzy ensued — a bonus that will help support the activities of this club that promotes Samoan culture on campus.
IT'S AN HONOR
Before events got under way at the Ho'ike, George Applegate of the Hawai'i Island Visitor's Bureau presented longtime Merrie Monarch executive director Auntie Dottie Thompson with the organization's annual award, recognizing one who has contributed to the preservations of the Hawaiian lifestyle, heritage or culture.
"She is the heart and soul of the festival and, I might add, she did this without pay and with her own style and grace," Applegate said.
Thompson, who is not much for fuss and folderol, accepted the award with a smile but declined the microphone in favor of getting the show going.
And while we're on the success of the festival, if last night's Ho'ike is any indication, this may be the most crowded year yet.
Last night, there were already people prowling the grounds of the Edith Kanaka'ole Stadium with "Need Ticket" signs for the upcoming nights of competition (no tickets are needed for Ho'ike).
There are fewer seats than ever for the competition this year: About 2,900 when you set aside seating for participating halau and VIPs. One reason for this is a heightened concern on the part of fire marshals nationally about crowding at public events; this resulted in the loss of 200 seats in 2004 to make room for fire exits. This year, 200 more seats were removed to make away for a seating area for persons who use wheelchairs.
JAPAN CONNECTION
Among those in Hilo for this week's events is a reporting team from Hula Le'a, one of two Japanese magazines that focus on hula. Subtitled "Stylish Hula & Hawaii Magazine," this quarterly is as thick as a Neighbor Island phone book and plump enough in the pocket to bring its publisher, a reporter and photographer and a bilingual O'ahu freelancer to Hilo for what has been called "hula's Olympiad."
Earlier this week, leimaker Na'ea Nae'ole took the reporter and photographer on an excursion into the mountains where he was gathering greenery for Halau O Kekuhi; he is among those being profiled in a series on masters of Hawaiian crafts.
Last night at the free Ho'ike concert, the reporting team was busy interviewing Japanese visitors in the audience and shooting pictures of the performances, which included the Japanese troupe, Hula Halau Kahula O Hawaii, which won competition set in Hilo's sister city, Ikano, earning them the right to appear on the Merrie Monarch stage.
16 Vie for Honor as Miss Aloha Hula
April 20, 2006 / Honolulu Advertiser, Wanda A. Adams, Assistant Features EditorWhile Maile Francisco makes her final bow as outgoing Merrie Monarch Festival Miss Aloha Hula tonight in Hilo, 16 other young women in the Edith Kanaka'ole Stadium will be trembling with a kind of nervous anticipation that only a past contestant can fully appreciate.
In this, the opening night of the three-day hula competition that is part of the one-week celebration of Hilo and all things hula, the women are competing for the honor of serving as a hula focal point for the coming year — Miss Aloha Hula receives dozens of requests to perform and appear around the world — and for the prestigious Hawaiian language award. Past competitors have parlayed their time on the unassuming plywood stage into work in broadcast and the music industry, jobs in the hotel industry and positions as kumu hula of their own halau.
This year's Miss Aloha Hula competitors (in alphabetical order by last name, followed by halau name, halau location and kumu hula (teacher):
• Carly Makanani Ah Sing, Ka Pa Hula 'O Kauanoe O Wa'ahila, Honolulu; kumu hula
• Maelia Loebenstein Carter. Faye Lei U'i Brigoli, Hula Halau O Lilinoe, Carson, Calif.; kumu hula Sissy Lilinoe Kaio.
• Bianca Kulia Kaleinani Costa, Ka Pa Hula O Ka Lei Lehua, Honolulu; kumu hula Snowbird Puananiopaoakalani Bento.
• Bernice Alohanamakanamaikalanimai Davis-Lim, Na Lei O Kaholoku, Kohala, Hawai'i; kumu hula Nani Lim Yap and Leialoha Lim Amina.
• Kapalai'ula Kamakaleiakawainui de Silva, Halau Mohala 'Ilima, Ka'ohau, O'ahu; kumu hula Mapuana de Silva.
• Jhameel Lewalani Sachiko Duarte, Keolalaulani Halau 'olapa O Laka, Kane'ohe, O'ahu; kumu hula Aloha Dalire.
• Makalani Hanau I Ka Manawa Ua Kipalale Mai Kuahiwi Sarai Pukuna Himsa Franco-Francis, Halau Na Lei Kaumaka O Uka, Kula, Maui; kumu hula Napua Greig and Kahulu Maluo-Huber.
• Anelaokalani Leon-Guerrero, Halau Ho'ola Ka Mana O Hawai'i, Dallas, Texas; kumu hula Keli'i Chang.
• Ka'enaalohaokau'ikaukehakeha Aoe Hopkins, Halau I Ka Wekiu, Honolulu; kumu hula Carl Veto Baker and Michael Nalanakila Casupang.
• Laura Ke'alanoana Imai, Halau Hula O Napunaheleonapua, Honolulu; kumu hula Rich Pedrina.
• Sharde Kamalamalamaonalani Mersberg, Hula Halau O Kamuela, Kalihi/Waimanalo, O'ahu; kumu hula Kau'ionalani Kamana'o and Kunewa Mook.
• Moanike'ala Nabarro, Halau Hula Olana, Pu'uloa, O'ahu; kumu hula Howard and Olana Ai.
• Tatiana Kawehiokalani Miu Lan Tseu, Ka Leo O Laka I Ka Hikina O Ka La, Kapalama, O'ahu; Kaleo Trinidad.
• Sharay Uemura, Halau O Ke 'Anuenue, Hilo, Hawai'i; kumu hula Glenn Kelena Vasconcellos.
• Aisha Kilikina Kanoelani Valmoja, Halau O Na Pua Kukui, O'ahu; kumu hula Ed Collier.
• Stephanie Makalapua Lum Yee, Halau Ke Kia'i A O Hula, Kalihi, O'ahu; kumu hula Kapi'olani Ha'o.
2006 Miss Aloha Hula Candidates, Halau
April 20, 2006 / Honolulu AdvertiserMiss Aloha Hula
This year's competitors (in alphabetical order by last name, followed by halau name and kumu hula (teacher)
• Carly Makanani Ah Sing, Ka Pa Hula 'O Kauanoe O Wa'ahila, Honolulu; kumu hula Maelia Loebenstein Carter.
• Faye Lei U'i Brigoli, Hula Halau O Lilinoe, Carson, Calif.; kumu hula Sissy Lilinoe Kaio.
• Bianca Kulia Kaleinani Costa, Ka Pa Hula O Ka Lei Lehua, Honolulu; kumu hula Snowbird Puananiopaoakalani Bento.
• Bernice Alohanamakanamaikalanimai Davis-Lim, Na Lei O Kaholoku, Kohala, Hawai'i; kumu hula Nani Lim Yap and Leialoha Lim Amina.
• Kapalai'ula Kamakaleiakawainui de Silva, Halau Mohala 'Ilima, Ka'ohau, O'ahu; kumu hula Mapuana de Silva.
• Jhameel Lewalani Sachiko Duarte, Keolalaulani Halau 'olapa O Laka, Kane'ohe, O'ahu; kumu hula Aloha Dalire.
• Makalani Hanau I Ka Manawa Ua Kipalale Mai Kuahiwi Sarai Pukuna Himsa Franco-Francis, Halau Na Lei Kaumaka O Uka, Kula, Maui; kumu hula Napua Greig and Kahulu Maluo-Huber.
• Anelaokalani Leon-Guerrero, Halau Ho'ola Ka Mana O Hawai'i, Dallas, Texas; kumu hula Keli'i Chang.
• Ka'enaalohaokau'ikaukehakeha Aoe Hopkins, Halau I Ka Wekiu, Honolulu; kumu hula Carl Veto Baker and Michael Nalanakila Casupang.
• Laura Ke'alanoana Imai, Halau Hula O Napunaheleonapua, Honolulu; kumu hula Rich Pedrina.
• Sharde Kamalamalamaonalani Mersberg, Hula Halau O Kamuela, Kalihi/Waimanalo, O'ahu; kumu hula Kau'ionalani Kamana'o and Kunewa Mook.
• Moanike'ala Nabarro, Hulau Hula Olana, Pu'uloa, O'ahu; kumu hula Howard and Olana Ai.
• Tatiana Kawehiokalani Miu Lan Tseu, Ka Leo O Laka I Ka Hikina O Ka La, Kapalama, O'ahu; Kaleo Trinidad.
• Sharay Uemura, Halau O Ke 'Anuenue, Hilo, Hawai'i; kumu hula Glenn Kelena Vasconcellos.
• Aisha Kilikina Kanoelani Valmoja, Halau O Na Pua Kukui, O'ahu; kumu hula Ed Collier.
• Stephanie Makalapua Lum Yee, Halau Ke Kia'i A O Hula, Kalihi, O'ahu; kumu hula Kapi'olani Ha'o.Group competition
Listed are halau followed by hula teacher
• Academy of Hawaiian Arts, Oakland, Calif.; kumu hula Mark Keali'i Ho'omalu
• Beamer-Solomon Halau O Po'ohala, Waimea, Hawai'i; Hulali Solomon-Covington
• Halau Ho'ola Ka Mana O Hawai'i, Dallas, Tex.; kumu hula Keli'i Chang
• Halau Hula O Hokulani, Central O'ahu; kumu hula Hokulani De Rego
• Halau Hula Olana, Pu'uloa, Oahu; kumu hula Howard and Olana A'i
• Halau Hula O Napunaheleonapua, Honolulu; kumu hula Rich Pedrina
• Halau Hula 'O Kawailiula, Kailua, Oahu; kumu hula Chinky Mahoe
• Halau I Ka Wekiu, Honolulu; kumu ula Carl Veto Baker and Michael Nalanakila Casupang
• Halau Ke Kia'i A O Hula, Honolulu; kumu hula Kapi'olani Ha'o
• Halau Mohala 'Ilima, Ka'ohau, O'ahu; kumu hula Mapuana de Silva
• Halau Na Lei Kaumaka O Uka, Kula, Maui; kumu hula Napua Grieg and Kahulu Maluo-Huber
• Halau O Ke 'A'ali'i Ku Makani, Kane'ohe, O'ahu; kumu hula Manu Boyd
• Halau O Ke 'Anuenue, Hilo, Hawai'i; kumu hula Glenn Kalena Vasconcellos
• Halau O Na Pua Kukui, Honolulu; kumu hula Ed Collier
• Hula Halau O Kamuela, Kalihi/Waimanalo; kumu hula Kau'ionalani Kamana'o and Kunewa Mook
• Hula Halau O Kou Lima Nani E, Hilo, Hawai'i; kumu hula Iwalani Kalima
• Hula Halau O Lilinoe, Carson, Calif.; kumu hula Sissy Lilinoe Kaio
• Ka Leo O Laka I Ka Hikina O Ka La, Honolulu; kumu hula Kaleo Trinidad
• Ka Pa Hula 'O Kauanoe o Wa'ahila, Honolulu; kumu hula Maelia Loebenstein Carter
• Ka Pa Hula O Ka Lei Lehua, Honolulu; kumu hula Snowbird Puananiopaoakalani Bento
• Keolalaulani Halau 'Olapa O Laka, Kane'ohe, Oahu; kumu hula Aloha Dalire
• Na Lei O Kaholoku, Kohala, Hawai'i; Nani Lim Yap and Leialoha Lim Amina
• Na Pua Me Ke Aloha, Carson, Calif.; Sissy Lilinoe Kaio
• Na Pualai o Likeolehua, Honolulu; kumu hula Leina'ala Kalama-Heine
Merrie Monarch Journal: from Hilo
April 19, 2006 / Honolulu Advertiser, Wanda A. Adams, Assistant Features EditorEditor's note: This is the second journal posting from Wanda Adams, who is on site at the Merrie Monarch Festival.
On the Merrie Monarch stage during rehearsals this Wednesday morning, the contrasts could not have been more sharp, or more indicative of hula's vitality.
At 8 a.m., the stage belonged to Hula Halau Kahula O Hawaii, the Tokyo-based school of Kyoko
Kubokawa. Kubokawa brought 93 of her 500 (yes, 500) students to the festival. The 91 women and two lone men will dance this evening during the annual Ho'ike, a free evening of entertainment offered to the citizens of Hilo as a thank you for putting up with the traffic jams, crowded stores and other byproducts of the annual Merrie Monarch Festival hula competition.
Kubokawa, who 17 years ago began studying with Merrie Monarch co-founder Uncle George Na'ope, and later with Leina'ala Kalama Heine, made the most of her troupe, dividing them into sub-groups that flow on and off the stage. They are performing a medley of familiar songs praising the mountain peaks of Maui, O'ahu, Kaua'i and the Big Island. And they come fully equipped with 'uli'uli (feathered rattle), pu'ili (split bamboo) and ipu (gourd drum), and each wearing at least an entire plant's worth of fresh, green ti leaves.
Kubokawa moved quietly around the perimeter of the stage, watching her students, occasionally
correcting or explaining. The dancers knew their moves and rarely came up wrong-footed. But there is a certain formality, almost a stiffness, in their performance, something that, at least to my eye, had an essential Japane-ness to it, particularly in the way they held their hands and heads. Yet you had only to see them smiling, hugging each other, wiping away tears and documenting every moment off-stage with their cameras to recognize how much the experience meant to them.
Later, Kubokawa attempts in her limited English to answer the question, "Why did you fall in love with hula?" She tilts her head back, smiles broadly and then frowns with the impossibility of putting it into English words. "Life!," she says.
"You mean hula is life?"
"Yes!," she says.
Next on stage is Mark Keali'i Ho'omalu's Academy of Hawaiian Arts, and the mood is altogether different. Ho'omalu is hula's bad boy, a role he seems to embrace with equal parts indifference and insouciance.
At first, he appears to be a taskmaster. He strides onto the stage in a black shirt and sweat pants, a yellow lawalawa wrapped around his waist and sunglasses shielding his eyes, clapping and counting as his men's and women's group move into their kahiko numbers.
They work without direction, dividing up the stage, their backs to each other, practicing the dances without benefit of accompaniment, counting out the rhythm to find their places. Like actors, each dancer locates a landmark or two that will indicate the correct position at key points in the dance.
Ho'omalu watches and says little. Eventually, he leaves the stage to begin working with the musicians. He sings or chants on every number and two of the four pieces are his own compositions, meaning alaka'i, senior dancers, do much of the work of teaching and fine-tuning.
The men's old-style dance is performed with canoe paddles, which alternately sweep the imaginary water, pound the stage with a thundering sound, and strike the air like weapons. The women perform a hula noho, a seated hula, with the puniu, a tiny drum strapped to the thigh.
These dances are hell on the stomach and back muscles, requiring great flexibility and strength. Also, because there is no foot movement, the eyes are riveted to the arms, making it all the more vital that the movements be in unison — some would say a risky choice, but one that could pay off in points.
As the groups move into the auana numbers, the mood lightens. The men praise the rains of Hilo in the familiar "Hilo Hula," performed at a lively pace. The women sway to "Piano Ahiahi," an old mele inspired by the songwriter's first experience of a piano.
Ho'omalu, ever the iconocolast, has them work facing the rear of the stage. "So you can see the expression my face when you make a mistake," he jokes.
He spends a lot of time on posture; it's important in hula to stand erect, open up the shoulders and chest and not hunch. "Stick your chestickles out!," he calls. "Try your bestessess."
At one point, the women are off-stage when he wants them on. "Hurry up!," he calls, "By the time you guys get it right we gotta get ready for dakine — Christmas."
Afterward, Ho'omalu squats on the ground, puffs a menthol and talks about hula and tradition, insisting that what he does is traditional, though his chanting style is best described as some kind of fusion, his choreography routinely stretches the rules and he more often uses his own work than established compositions.
"I have limits, boundaries, things I will not do," he says, though he has difficulty defining these. "I think Hawai'i has room to grow. I think they need to understanding some things."
He tells his students that hula has three purposes: to entertain, to inspire and to teach. If you entertain well, some people will be inspired to learn. "I try to do what we have long done very well — to entertain. Some people have gone the other route, which is to learn and learn and learn."
Asked why he decided to return to Merrie Monarch after an absence of six years, he thinks for a while. "I came here to show my hula," he says. And then, hinting broadly that he understands that his style is unlikely to score high with conservative judges, he adds, "Sometimes it's not the points you have to get to win, it's the point you're trying to make."
Chinky Mahoe drops by to say "aloha" and confides that he can't wait until it's Monday. "I can't wait until it's my turn," Ho'omalu counters. "I like go twice."
Ho'omalu says he finds no difficulty in pursuing a life in Hawaiian culture even though he lives away from the Islands, in Oakland, Calif.
In fact, he swears he doesn't even miss home.
"Whatever I need, I make it. I grow it," he said. "Cliches can be useful. If Hawai'i is a state of mind, like the cliche, then my mind is always in Hawai'i. Wherever I put my feet, that's Hawai'i."
Scenes from the Merrie Monarch Festival: Final Rehearsals
Special section: 43 Merrie Monarch Festival
April 19, 2006 / Honolulu Advertiser, Wanda A. Adams, Assistant Features EditorHilo Hanakahi*, Hawai'i — For months now, the halau participating in the Merrie Monarch Festival hula competition have been practicing their dances on imaginary stages, marked out in masking tape or yarn or chalk on the floors of rehearsal halls or even outdoors on the grass.
As few have spaces as large as the festival's capacious stage, they've had to compress their choreography or perform the dances in chopped-up bits.
But now, the real thing — the scuffed plywood stage laid out on the floor of the Edith Kanaka'ole Tennis Stadium.
A scene last Saturday is typical. Miss Aloha Hula candidate Kapalai'ula de Silva, youngest daughter of kumu hula Mapuana de Silva of Halau Mohala 'Ilima, paces the stage in pensive silence while her mother, her father and several of her hula sisters look on. Readying to perform her kahiko (traditional) dance, with its demanding attendant chant, she walks through the dance, trades quiet words and giggles with her mother, laughingly orders her sister to quit taking pictures. She prowls the stage, head-down, like a runner examining the track before a race. She cries out in pain as her mother massages the muscles of her chest.
Finally, she is ready.
Her chant ripples through the empty hall. Her dance is both graceful and powerful, moving between fast and slow, its cadence set by the kala'au sticks she taps together. There is a lot of deep work, kneeling and squatting. By the end, she is sweating despite a chill breeze. But she is smiling, as is her kumu mother.
Scenes like this will be repeated hour after hour until the final rehearsal slot, 2 p.m. Saturday, when Snowbird Bento's Ka Pa Hula O Ka Lei Lehua will get the last chance to rehearse before the final competition.
Halau arrive as early as possible in Hilo to take advantage of the coveted one- and two-hour rehearsal times assigned to the schools between Easter weekend and the opening of the three-day competition on Thursday. Rehearsals begin as early as 7 a.m. and some nights continue as late as 11 p.m.
Here, as in everything to do with Hawaiian culture, protocol applies. Halau are not permitted to enter the stadium while another group is on the stage. Rehearsals begin with rituals particular to each school: chanting or singing. The usually end with a forceful but quiet talk from the kumu hula, followed by a circle of prayer. Tears often flow.
Rehearsal time is particularly sacred for those halau that enter all three divisions: Miss Aloha Hula, female group and male group. These can afford no down time because they are cramming three rehearsals into one — as the men file off, sweating from their workout, the women are climbing the ramp to the stage.
These practice days also offer KITV director John Wray the opportunity to time the performances with a stopwatch and make quick sketches that help him determine the best camera angles for each performance.
And they may be the only opportunity the groups get to perform the dance with the actual musicians who will be playing for them; most have rehearsed with recordings or their own halau musicians.
KEEPING BUSY
One musician who'll be keeping extremely busy during this Merrie Monarch is Hoku Award-winning singer/songwriter Kaumakaiwa "Lopaka" Kanaka'ole of Hilo, the great-grandson of the kumu hula for whom this stadium is named. Four of his compositions are being used by three different halau.
"I'm so honored, and it's so nice to be singing my own stuff," said Kanaka'ole.
Saturday morning, he rehearsed with Halau O Lilinoe of Carson, Calif., whose women are dancing to two songs, one from each of his recorded collections, "Ha'i Kupuna" and "Welo." Be ready for the auana number: It's about as close to rock 'n roll as you're going to see on a Merrie Monarch stage, but in a very Hawaiian way.
Another song been selected by Maui's Halau Na Lei Kaumaka O Uka.
Kanaka'ole is especially happy that his Auntie Ala — Leina'ala Kalama Heine — has chosen two of his early songs for her Na Pualei 'O Likolehua to perform. His mom, Kekuhi Kanahele-Frias, is joining him in singing these: "We coaxed her out of retirement," he said.
As soon as Merrie Monarch is over, Halau O Kekuhi, his family's hula troupe, heads to Japan to mount a production of their hula opera "Holo Mai Pele." Then he'll return to Mountain Apple's recording studios on O'ahu to record a self-titled collection. "Ho! Busy," he said.
SONGS OF THE SNOW
Mary Ann Lim, matriach of the musical Lim Family of Kohala, has seen so many of her children and grandchildren perform in hula competition that you'd think she'd grow a little blase about it. But here she is on Saturday, watching her granddaughter Alohanamakanamaikalanimai Davis-Lim rehearse for her Miss Aloha Hula performance, and Tutu-wahine is observing as intently as if she hadn't seen the dance 100 times by now.
She explained that all the songs her daughters' Na Lei O Kaholoku will be performing this year are related to Poli'ahu, the snow goddess. Davis-Lim's auana number requires her to express both the great happiness of love and its loss, for the chosen one of the snow goddess, a Kaua'i chief, finds he cannot endure the great cold of her mountain home, and the two part. "See, see — now is the sad part. Poliahu had a hard time," Mary Ann Lim says. And when it's over, she murmurs, "Awesome! Maka'i!"
Davis-Lim has an enviable training team as she prepares for the competition. Her aunties Nani Lim Yap and Leialoha Lim Amina, kumu hula of Merrie Monarch's first place winner last year, are her teachers. Her auntie Lorna Lim is an award-winning hula competitor, too, and dances in the front line of Kaholoku — though she's sitting out the actual dancing this year as she's expecting. Another Lim grandson, Covington, a four-time Master Keiki Hula, is helping perfect the dance, too.
Na Lei O Kaholoku made the long drive over from Kahala to fit in this rehearsal. As soon as it was over, the Lim family band members would hop a plane to Maui to perform at Celebration of the Arts at the Ritz Carlton Kapalua.
HULA WORD FOR THE DAY: LINE
It's not a Hawaiian word, but it's what rehearsal is all about. Like the corps de ballet in the classic dance, hula halau in group performance are judged on their ability to form and keep straight rows and to maintain an equal distance between the dancers, even as the choreography moves them about the stage. Maintaining the line is as important as knowing the steps and moving in unison.
"Line! Line! Line!," calls an alaka'i of Halau O Lilinoe, shooting a sideways glance at her hula sisters. Leialoha Lim Amina, co-kumu with her sister, Nani Lim Yap of last year's first place-winning Na Lei O Kaholoku, uses a gentle joke to let her dancers know that one side of the line is spreading itself a bit thin: "You're so strong on that side; you're just pulling everyone with you!" she says. But the point is made.
Just which line a dancer is assigned to, and where in the line they dance, is another topic of discussion — though not one much talked about in public. Kumu hula showcase the strongest dancers in the front line; to be assigned there is an honor, a vote of confidence in the student. Generally, the alaka'i anchor the line, dancing at the center or at one end.
But Kaholoku alaka'i Lorna Lim exhorts the troupe not to think that a farther-back position means a dancer can just follow along. "The second line has to think it's the front line. What if you get moved to the front tomorrow? You can't be waiting for them to show you what to do." Furthermore, judges are sure to watch for second-line flubs. Also, today's more complex choreography often has the rear lines dancing to the front, or the two lines dancing with different steps, putting both in the spotlight.
* Hilo is often referred to as Hilo Hanakahi, in honor of a favorite chief and "Mahalo E Hilo Hanakahi" is a favorite song praising the warmth of the people here. Actually, Hilo Hanakahi is one of three districts of Hilo, referring to the area toward Keaukaha and Hamakua.
Hula's Season
April 19, 2006 / Honolulu Advertiser, Wanda A. Adams, Assistant Features EditorThe weeklong 43rd annual Merrie Monarch Festival is under way in Hilo, with hula performances, craft fairs, exhibits and other activities. The hula competition that is the heart of the festival begins, as always, with tonight's free ho'ike (performance) organized by Hilo's Halau O Kekuhi, building to tomorrow's Miss Aloha Hula competition and finally the two nights of group competition.
Here's what to watch for, and what's new.
ON TV
Most Merrie Monarch hula viewing is on television, since only a couple of thousand people can score the coveted tickets. Many look forward to the broadcast's mini-stories about hula and about the contestants, crafted by producer David Kalama in partnership with KITV Channel 4.
This year, Kalama explores the structure of a halau (hula school) and the Hawaiian craft of kapa-making. He interviews kumu hula Pua Kanahele on how hula schools were organized in pre-contact times, and how they work now.
Among the disciplines that have been reintroduced into hula schools since the Hawaiian renaissance is creating the ornamentation for hula kahiko (traditional style). Two Miss Aloha Hula candidates are beating their own kapa (cloth made from wauke, the paper mulberry bark) to wear in their performance, a daunting task.
Kalama's cameras have followed Carly Makanani Ah Sing of Kaimuki throughout the process, from cutting down the wauke trees through stripping, fermenting, pounding and decorating. It's been a challenge, Kalama said: With all the rain of past weeks, the outcome of the story was still undetermined at press time.
SEVEN JUDGES
A couple of years ago, the Merrie Monarch organization decided to change its seven-member judging panel more frequently than in the past, and to bring in some of the younger kumu hula — including those whose halau still sometimes compete (of course, they don't compete in the years when they serve as judges). Last year, popular Hilo kumu hula Johnny Lum Ho took time off from competition to serve as a judge (he's taking off this year, too).
So it is that kumu hula William Sonny Kahakuleilehua Haunu'u Ching will be seated at the stage-level tables for the first time. Ching takes every fourth year off from Merrie Monarch competition, so his Halau Na Mamo O Pu'uanahulu, which earned the last three Miss Aloha Hula crowns and took second place in both men's and women's group competition in 2005, would have been sitting out the competition in any case.
Coming from Maui to judge this year is kumu hula Hokulani Holt-Padilla of Halau Pa'u O Hi'iaka and a founder of Ka 'Aha Hula 'O Halauaola, the World Conference on Hula.
Other judges are chanter and kumu hula Cy M. Bridges, kumu hula and University of Hawai'i professor Victoria Holt-Takamine, kumu hula Wayne Keahi Chang, kumu hula Kawaikapuokalani K. Hewitt and Nalani Kanaka'ole of Halau O Kekuhi and the University of Hawai'i-Hilo.
MISS ALOHA HULA
This year's Merrie Monarch Miss Aloha Hula competition is tied with 2003 for the most candidates ever: 16 dancers, each of whom will perform one old-style and one modern number in a single, long evening of competition. Look for the broadcast to barely squeak in under the 11 p.m. deadline — or maybe run over.
Two of the competitors have a double blessing — or burden: Their kumu hula is their parent.
Kumu hula Mapuana de Silva of Halau Mohala 'Ilima, known for its dignity, near-flawless line and period style, is showcasing her youngest daughter, Kapalai'ula.
And kumu hula Carl Veto Baker, who operates award-winning Halau I Ka Wekiu with Michael Nalanakila Casupang, will direct his daughter, Ka'enaalohaokau'i-kaukehakeha Aoe Hopkins, in Miss Aloha Hula competition for the second time; she competed in 2003.
Another interesting story, according to Kalama, is that of Stephanie Makalapua Lum Yee, who dances for Kapi'olani Ha'o's Halau Ke Kia'i A O Hula. Yee lives in Alaska, and both she and her kumu hula have been hopping north and south periodically for the past year; Ha'o has a class of students, mostly expatriate Islanders, up there.
GROUP COMPETITION
In the group competition, there is sure to be interest in the appearance of perennially controversial Mark Keali'i Ho'omalu and his Oakland, Calif.-based Academy of Hawaiian Arts. Ho'omalu is the kumu hula, chanter, hula instrument designer and recording artist whose last CD, showcasing his signature style of Westernized chant and song, was defiantly titled "Call It What You Like." Originally from 'Aiea, he studied and performed with the legendary halau kane Waimapua in the 1970s. Since moving to California, he has worked with two companies — Tiare Otea and Na Mele Hula 'Ohana. He brought Na Mele Hula 'Ohana to the Merrie Monarch in 2000. In 2003, he founded the nonprofit Academy of Hawaiian Arts.
Two other Mainland halau are participating this year: Halau Ho'ola Ka Mana O Hawai'i, the Dallas, Texas-based troupe of Keli'i Chang, and Sissy Lilinoe Kaio's Hula Halau O Lilinoe.
Also back after an absence is kumu hula Leina'ala Kalama Heine, mistress of the comic hula and frequent star on the stage with the Brothers Cazimero, with her Na Pualei o Likolehua.
Altogether, it's an interesting mix of the three out-of-town halau, a handful of younger-generation crowd-pleasers (Ka Pa Hula O Ka Lei Lehua under Snowbird Bento; her former hula brother Kaleo Trinidad's Ka Leo O Laka I Ka Hikina O Ka La; and Manu Boyd's Halau O Ke 'A'ali'i Ku Makani), familiar favorites (Halau Mohala 'Ilima, Halau Hula 'O Kawailiula with kumu hula Chinky Mahoe) and powerhouses. (Will Hula Halau 'O Kamuela inch ahead of Na Lei O Kaholoku this year?)
It's Hula Time
Stadium readied for festival events
April 19, 2006 / Hawaii Tribune-Herald, Karen WelshThe Edith Kanaka'ole Multipurpose Stadium was bustling with activity Tuesday as the venue was prepared for the Merrie Monarch Festival's signature events.
The free Ho'ike kicks off tonight at 5:30 p.m., followed by the Miss Aloha Hula competition on
Thursday and the group hula competitions on Friday and Saturday.
Hula fans probably are already anticipating the fun, food and fellowship that will take place in the stadium this week.
But few will take a tally of the months, weeks, days and hours spent by the dedicated workers who've been scrambling to make sure the celebration is enjoyed by all.
"People think -- 'poof!' -- it happens, but it doesn't" said Luana Kawelu, the festival's assistant director. "We have to prepare. It's a big job."
From early in the morning, until late into the evening, the stadium's been alive with activity that is scheduled to continue until late this afternoon, as all the little tasks that help make the Merrie Monarch Festival a success are finished.
Tuesday was no different.
At the front of the stadium, Lei Branco, a participant in the Merrie Monarch from the very beginning and this year's Royal Parade grand marshal, was leading a group of volunteers as they prepared to bring the food concession area up to full service.
They were setting up the condiments, napkins, silverware and decorations for the food booth.
"It takes us three days to set up," she said. "We're here very early in the morning. When it's complete, it's functional and very busy during the festival. People are everywhere, but when they come in, we're ready."
Near the food booth is the soda and water concession. This year it's run by the Hui Maka'i Motorcycle Club. President Dexter Chaves and club member Larry Cabral were busy stacking 170 cases each of cola and water, placing some in coolers and portable refrigerator units.
"We need to be on top of it," Chaves said. "It's going to be hectic, come tomorrow."
Chaves said he never gave much thought about the preparation until he started working the concessions area this year.
"The coordination of this event is awesome," he said. "The amount of people they have -- it's an awesome feat."
Inside the stadium, a half-dozen lighting engineers from Eggshell Lighting on Oahu were spending the day stringing cords and cables and hooking up lights for the stage and interview areas.
"We're making sure everyone looks good and that nothing blows up," said lighting supervisor Tim Desmond. "We'll be ready. No doubt."
Near the stage was head sound man Glenn Yafusio. He's been on the job for three weeks, wiring and prepping for final rehearsals. On Tuesday he was completing sound checks for the Ho'ike performers.
Yafuso and a couple of workers spent the day fine-tuning the audio system.
"We rehearse everything before the show time," he said. "We've got a lot of equipment here, but it's for a reason. I couldn't do this without my crew."
Spring Spalding has helped with the festival for 25 years. One of his jobs Tuesday was hanging all the signs and the curtains on the dressing rooms.
"I'm all the time excited about the celebration," he admitted. "It's great. It's really great."
Behind the stadium, a three-man crew was setting up for the live KITV broadcasts, which begin Thursday. It was their job to make sure the equipment inside the park and power trailer was ready to go.
"This is a really big thing for KITV," said Rodney Kobayakawa, general manager of NEP Sharpshooters. "We have to be ready to go by 6 p.m. on Wednesday."
The County of Hawaii was probably one of the busiest entities at the site. Daryl Sakoda and another county worker were taking all the trash barrels off a truck bed to place a various locations around the building.
"We're just doing our annual preparation for the Merrie Monarch," Sakoda said. "Our crew works seven days a week, day and night. We do all kinds of stuff to prepare. We clean the bleachers, locker rooms, bathrooms and maintain the grounds."
In the end, workers perform their tasks for the greater good. Few, if any, attendees will take note of the effort. But there is one who will.
Kawelu understands the commitment it takes to produce a successful festival, and she's thankful for everyone's participation.
"It's hard work," she said. "It takes cooperation. Everybody works together here, and I appreciate it."
But It Looks So Easy
Hula dancers put in long hours for flawless results
April 18, 2006 / Hawaii Tribune-Herald, Karen WelshEveryone has a love language -- a need to receive words of affirmation, gifts, quality time, acts of service and physical touch.
Hula encompasses them all.
At least that's what I recently experienced after becoming an honorary member of Hula Halau O' Kawananakoa in Keaukaha.
Except for one hula performed during an elementary school May Day program and a couple of early childhood lessons -- where the instructor kept hitting the back of my calves with a stick because I couldn't keep my heels on the floor -- I never dreamed of being anything more than an eager spectator of this beautiful art.
There's always been a sadness deep within my being because hula is so incredibly communicative.
And that's me. The talker of talk. The writer of words.
To be left out of something so profoundly a part of the culture, so loving an expression and, under the right circumstances, an adoring gift of worship to ke Akua, has been excruciatingly painful.
To tell the truth, this feeling has become more acute since I became the mama kahu of a Hawaiian church.
But no more.
After two sessions with the tutus at Kawananakoa Gym, I've found a place go belong, a place to become -- a sisterhood so tight that it defines the term "ohana."
These women tenderly aloha each other, touching, kissing, affirming each other's very existence and being.
They genuinely care about each other.
And me.
The halau members open every session with pule, a prayer to ke Akua, before dancing.
Then it begins.
The hula.
It's surprising that a novice, such as myself, can begin to pick up on the meaning after only one time through a song.
The first mele is "Ke Anu O Waimea," by B. Kuana Torres of Na Palapalai, tells of the beauty of Waimea, the skin-piercing wind in the shivering cold.-"I ka poli o ka ua, e honihoni ana e -- In the bosom of the rain we embrace," the melodic song recalls. "I ke kakahiaka e moani ke 'ala o ka 'awapuhi ho'i e -- The scent of ginger wafting in the morning."
Each movement is precise and means something, the poetic motions telling a story, serving a utilitarian purpose to pass on a story, a way of life.
"It's important to study the piece," kumu hula Alberta "Birdie" Nicolas says. "You need to do your homework and have a connection to it. The important thing is, all hula is not the same. I can be done in different versions. Each halau can dance a different rendition to the music."
Many special movements are gleaned throughout the songs. "Makani 'Olu 'Olu," "Moku O Keawe" and "Nani Venuse" highlight the uwehi, left step, right step, both knees flashed outward; the kaholo, three step vamp; the Kalakaua, step, then sway forward and back; the lele, swaying back; the ami, rotation of hips; the ami kuku, really fast rotation of hips and the hela, a step back with one foot, then point with the other.
Not one step or move for this newbie hula dancer was possible without the patience and instruction of alaka'i, or assistant, Jo Ann Loa.
"Twinkle, the twinkle's not out, the twinkle is in," she instructs. "Sassy, around the world, ami, front, back, double cross, up the road, luna, pick the flowers, plenty. When you come up, no look grumpy.
"Ha'ina. One, two, three, four, back, pua malama, twinkle," Jo Ann guides. "Around the island, touch, face, shoulder, kapu, shoulder, kapu, kapu, kapu, winding road, forward, crooked road, in the heavens, double cross, plenty, twinkle, sassy."
One important lesson gleaned throughout the practice is there is a variety of hula. A mele can be fast or slow. Gentle or rough. It can speak about certain places in Hawaii, the weather, a battle waged or, my favorite, the romance often expressed between two lovers.
Every verse, each idea, is always conveyed twice, probably because the message is worth repeating.
As one song melds into another, one thing is made clear -- hula is hard work. It's also great exercise. Sweat pours from the back of my neck and trickles down my back. I'm happy to make it through the dance without collapsing, but the wahine, all older than I, are eager to practice it "one more time."
Right about now I'm short of breath and not keeping up with the aunties is quite embarrassing.
However, their encouragement brings a smile to my face.
"We cannot shake it," Birdie jokes. "We just put WD40 here and oil there and keep moving."
Birdie also reminds me that many of them have been dancing together since they were 7 years old.
That's a long time.
"For us, hula is a part of our culture," Birdie says. "We've learned it from small. It's our communication. We are expressing our love for the art."
I'm hanging in there, still in the groove, soaking in the hula like a dry sponge.
Then they go to a "hapa haole" song called "Surfing With The Dolphins." This auana, or modern-day hula mixes traditional hula moves with country line dancing.
Halfway through the song I collapse on the cold linoleum floor -- too tired to shake another step out of my weary, aching body.
Luckily it's time for a break anyway. The halau has some business to attend. Birthdays to celebrate. Competitions for Aloha Week and the Hawaii Kupuna festivals to plan.
Crafts to make.
Service projects to finish.
They do everything together. It's as if one heart is beating for them, the heart of hula.
That's probably why the halau members keep coming back for more.
"I love everything about this halau," said dancer Lorraine Veincent. "Over here everybody helps everybody. No one is better than the other. We are all just one."
That's what makes hula special.
"A halau is typically known as a family activity," Birdie says. "It's close-knit. Everyone participates. It's a bond.
It's not just one thing," Birdie reminds. "It's a culture. We have a lot of skills and abilities that we share with other. We have a lot of talent to offer each other. We're not stagnant."
The practice is over and, auwe, the pain sets in with shin splints and cramps. I'm glad Birdie took the time to teach me one final step -- the massage technique to relieve aching arm and leg muscles.
"And they say hula is easy," she laughs. "Not!"
Reflecting back, it's nice to be in the hula hoop. After all, they speak my language and I'm loving every moment of it.
If only my feet felt the same way.
Chicken-Skin Time for Hilo
April 16, 2006 / Hawaii Tribune-HeraldHula fans from around the world will turn their attention to this usually sleepy town today, when the 43rd Annual Merrie Monarch Festival officially gets under way.
The passion Hilo has for the festival is a joy to behold, and the "aloha spirit" will be in full display all week as residents, tourists and competitors come together to share their enthusiasm for hula and all things Hawaiian.
The Tribune-Herald is honored once again to have the opportunity to cover this grand event, starting with the special 48-page Merrie Monarch Festival preview in today's edition. This year, our preview includes a fascinating history of the festival and how it began more than 40 years ago.
That story is especially important to tell right now. In preparing it for publication, we could not help noticing that the "grand auntie and uncle" of the festival -- Dottie Thompson and George Na'ope -- are noticeably more frail this year.
Now more than ever it's essential to recognize these pioneers for the contributions they've made to Hawaiian culture and to the preservation and promotion of hula.
Their gift to Hawaii is arguably this state's finest and most authentic cultural festival, and it remains Hilo's pride and joy.
The Merrie Monarch's economic impact also is impressive. Each year the festival and its related activities pump millions of dollars into the Big Island economy.
About the only complaint people have with the festival is that sometimes the hula competitions are too long. This year that will be especially true.
With 16 Miss Aloha Hula contestants and 25 different halau scheduled to perform later in the week, this year's competition could run more than five hours each night.
For all but the most diehard hula fans, that's a long time to be sitting still. It also means that the Tribune-Herald most likely will not have final results ready for publication the day after competition.
That's a small nit to pick, however, during a week packed with so much pageantry, drama and aloha. We look forward to sharing all the wonderful stories as they unfold and become part of the Merrie Monarch Festival's long and storied legacy.
Merrie Monarch Quilts
April 7, 2006 / Hawaii Tribune-HeraldMaster quilter Junedale Quinories, center, sits at an antique Singer sewing machine, while
studentsRoberta Muller, left, and Emma McAlexander hold quilted pieces they're working on.
This year's annual Merrie Monarch Quilt exhibit, opening with a public reception tonight from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Wailoa Center, includes 31 pieces, including the purple Pua Pake, left, and the red Aloalo, sewn by quilters Kathleen Coelho and Naomi Beals. The exhibit runs through April 28.
Gallant efforts lift Merrie Monarch Festival
April 4, 2005 / Honolulu Advertiser / Wanda A. AdamsLike the brief but dramatic rain shower that swept over Edith Kanaka'ole Stadium Saturday night — the chilly water droplets propelled into the open-air building and visible for but a moment in the bright TV lights — the Merrie Monarch Festival is both a powerful experience, and a fleeting one.
Within 30 minutes of the screaming, chanting, singing outbursts that greet the announcements of the winners, the dancers are in their vans and on their buses, the KOA Puna biker security guards have fired up their Harleys and headed south and the cleanup crews are making their own mighty noise, slamming folding chairs shut and chasing the opala across the floor with roaring leaf blowers.
Even the hotel hallway parties don't last long; everyone is exhausted to the point of silliness, and most have early plane flights to catch.
As Merrie Monarch veteran Robert Cazimero pointed out in placing his halau's overall win in perspective: "Tomorrow is another day" — and one back in the real world.
But images linger.
There was the sight of Cazimero's chin dropping to his chest as he took a moment to master his emotions when his halau's kane kahiko award was announced, while all around him people were on their feet screaming. This was the first hint of the upset win the men's group would achieve with impressively high scores. Halau Na Kamalei would go on to win kane 'auana and then the overall award.
Through it all, Cazimero seemed most animated when recognizing the achievements of men with whom he has danced, and whom he has mentored over the past 30 years, since Halau Na Kamalei was formed.
Minutes before his first award was announced, he had been on his feet, pointing vigorously in a "you da man" gesture toward his competitors and former students, Karl Veto Baker and Michael Casupang of Halau I Ka Wekiu, who had placed second. Later, he would jump to his feet again as former student Manu Boyd and his Halau O Ke A'ali'i Ku Makani received an award in the women's division.
After receiving the trophy, Cazimero said: "I felt good just coming here, being with my students, especially my students who are teachers now. I am really more happy for them than for myself. I never thought it would come to this." Cazimero has been known to slip into Hilo during the Merrie Monarch rehearsal period just to offer a new kumu his presence as support, slipping away again before competition starts so as not to draw any of the celebrity away from the competing kumu.
On his mind, as on the minds of those who follow hula like a spectator sport, there are thoughts of the next generation, one of whom, young Kaleo Trinidad, made an impressive showing in his second year in Merrie Monarch competition with Ka Leo O Laka I Ka Hikina O Ka La. Trinidad, along with hula sister Snowbird Bento, helped his kumu, Holoua Stender, bring Ka Pa Hula O Kamehameha to Merrie Monarch three years ago, and was uniki'd (formally graduated as a teacher) in 2003.
Last weekend, Trinidad went to the stage five times — once to accompany his Miss Aloha Hula candidate, Jeri-Lynn Koko, daughter of the Makaha Sons' Jerome Koko, to receive her first runner-up award, and four times as his halau placed in wahine kahiko, kane kahiko kane 'auana and kane overall divisions.
And there are thoughts of the small acts of courage and commitment that Merrie Monarch dancers make, notably the Halau Na Mamo O Pu'uanahulu teaching assistant, Lopak Igarta-De Vera, who danced a vigorous and highly choreographed kane 'auana number with an ankle that had put him in the hospital just the night before. Normally, he is seen on the stage alongside kumu hula Sonny Ching, but this time he appeared only once, on crutches and in obvious pain, with his hula brothers around to help steady him.
In just a few weeks, it starts all over again: Merrie Monarch officials will begin compiling the list of 2006 invitees.
And what of the future? There's always concern about the scarceness of tickets (half the house is filled with participants, their families and VIPs, so a scant 2,000-plus tickets go on sale) and the stage itself, constructed atop a tennis court, isn't ideal.
Hilo clothing manufacturer Sig Zane, whose family life and work are intimately tied up in hula, says he would love to see a new home for the event: "Maybe one day we can build a stage where the dancer is really celebrated, where every sound they make can be heard, every movement they make can be seen and appreciated." He envisions something like a sumo stage, where the audience is in tiers above the pa (hula enclosure) to better reveal the lines and the choreography.
"Ho, such dreams, yeah?"
Merrie Monarch results Weekend Scene: Hilo dances
April 4, 2005 / Honolulu Star Bulletin / Commentary by Gary C.W. ChunMusings and observations from an elated first-time festival-goer: » With all due respect to the excellent job KITV does in telecasting the Merrie Monarch Festival each year -- and now simulcasting it to a worldwide audience on the Internet -- hula of this magnitude should be experienced at least once in person.
It might be a local cliché, but to see top-notch groups of women and men chant and move in perfect unison -- right in front of you on a large, bare-lit stage, with nothing to distract you -- is truly chicken skin. And what they express in dance is nothing less than the human condition steeped in the rich culture of our islands. While it helps to have a passing knowledge of the ways of hula, it's enough to glance at the synopses in the festival program to get a basic understanding of what's being conveyed. It's your choice afterward whether to dig deeper into hula's rich loam.
As Keola Dalire of Keolalaulani Halau 'Olapa O Laka told me, "Age is nothing but a number." Proof positive was seeing the growing maturity and confidence in 18-year-old Pohaikau'iulani Nu'uhiwa, who placed fourth in this year's Miss Aloha Hula contest. She's been dancing since 5, always with veteran Aloha Dalire's halau, and this was her sixth Merrie Monarch.
But there's another side to her that is equally important to her upbringing. Nu'uhiwa was the Punahou School setter who won the Star-Bulletin's 2004 State Girls' Volleyball Player of the Year accolade. And she'll continue her game (and step away from hula temporarily) while at the College of Southern Idaho starting in the fall on a full volleyball scholarship.
I know she was disappointed that, as Keola's "little sister," she didn't win the title as Dalire and her two sisters did in previous years, but hula as the art will always be part of her life. May her muse, the goddess Keaomelemele, continue to inspire and guide her.
There were a couple of instances of unexpected drama on Friday and Saturday nights. On Friday, right after Halau Mohala 'Ilima's hula kahiko, a group of Maori men rose in one section of the bleachers to give a rousing war haka in appreciation of their sisters-in-spirit and festival hosts, halting their exit through the stadium.
The young women of Mapuana de Silva chanted, in return, their aloha and thanks to the Maori, then continued on their way out.And late Saturday evening, one of those infamous Hilo rain squalls hit, accompanied by enough wind to send a fine mist swirling from the back of the auditorium to near the front row, "blessing" the audience on an already chill night.
Man, I'm glad I packed an umbrella at the last moment.
While group halau portraits in this year's program were fairly standard, the frat-boy pix of Halau I Ka Wekiu hinted at what kolohe things were going to occur during their performances. I will now always associate the smell of fresh-mown grass with their lascivious hula kahiko "Ko Ma'i Ho'eu'eu."
That smell, mixed with the testosterone emanating from their, um, loins, made you forget about any kind of kaona (deeper meaning) with this hula. It was an explicitly expressed mele ma'i -- originally created to help ensure the continued flourishing of the royal bloodlines through procreative activities -- that brought forth heated screams and knowing chuckles from the Friday night audience.
The next night, kumu hula Karl Veto Baker and Michael Casupang's hula 'auana was a playful and slightly goofy "Ipo Lei Momi," with their handsome kane playing up a swinging '60s playboy-Elvis image, done up local style, that wouldn't look out of place in a Waikiki hotel showroom revue.
While the best hula halau are saved for the second portion of each night's competition, some of the earlier groups might distinguish themselves enough one year to move to the latter portion of the evening.
These would include Kapu Kinimaka-Alquiza's Na Hula 'O Kaohikukapulani from Hanapepe, Kauai; Keali'i Ceballos' Halau Keali'i O Nalani from Los Angeles; and Snowbird Bento's Ka Pa Hula O Ka Lei Lehua from Honolulu.
Both Bento and up-and-comer Kaleo Trinidad share a common history as hula siblings in Holoua Stender's halau. Trinidad's kane made such an impressive debut last year that they were scheduled right after Cazimero's halau this year. (Cazimero's kane were given the showcase position at the top of the second half of the competition.)
Bento and her halau were always warmly received by the audience. If she can translate that warmth to her choreography, both she and Trinidad will represent the next generation of kumu hula masters.
'Auana Contest Delights With Elegance, Fluid Style
April 3, 2005 / Honolulu Star Bulletin / Gary C.W. ChunAfter a decade absent from the Merrie Monarch Festival, Robert Cazimero and the men of Halau Na Kamalei made up for lost time, winning the overall trophy in this year's 42nd annual hula competition.
Halau Na Kamalei swept all kane hula categories winning the kahiko or ancient dance, 'auana or modern dance and overall titles.Cazimero's halau put together sterling performances over the two nights of competition -- Friday, with "Kahikilani," and last night with the proud anthem "Kona Kai 'Opua."
In the wahine division, Na Lei O Kaholoku from Kohala on the Big Island, and kumu hula Nani Lim Yap and Leialoha Amina won for the second year in a row. They also repeated in winning the kahiko competition for their sublime hula to "He Mele no Lauke'ie'ie."
William Sonny Ching, who has been kumu to the last three Miss Aloha Hula winners, continued his strong showing at the festival, with his wahine coming in second in both kahiko and overall categories, and third in 'auana. His kane took second in both 'auana and overall categories, and fourth in kahiko.
Ching plans to take at least a couple of years off from the Merrie Monarch.
In only their second year at the festival, kumu hula Kaleo Trinidad and his halau Ka Leo O Lake I Ka Hikina O Ka La showed that they will be a force to reckoned with in years to come, with his Miss Aloha Hula candidate coming in second this year, and placing high in wahine kahiko (4th). Trinidad's men placed third overall and in the kahiko for "'Ike I Ke One Kani A'o Nohili," a mele pana that heralds beloved and famous places of Kaua'i. His men placed fourth in 'auana for a virile and progressive-minded "Nakulukulu Ka Nalu."
Other standout performances last night included the rousing and entertaining paniolo hula from Kapi'olani Ha'o's Halau Ke Ki'ai A'o Hula of Kapalama. Ha'o's choreography, that included inventive and crowd-pleasing moves that brought a bit of the rodeo into the Edith Kanaka'ole Tennis Stadium, resulted in placing third in the 'auana category.
Elegantly dressed in eggshell-colored gowns with long trains, Halau Hula O Hokulani's "Ku'uipo I Ka He'e Pu'e One" told the romantic tale, written by Princess Miriam Likelike in the late 1800s, of a couple sharing but a brief moment of perfect love. For that, the hula halau placed second in the wahine 'auana category.
Cazimero's former students also did well at this year's Merrie Monarch Festival. Manu Boyd and the wahine of Halau o ke A'li'i Ku Makani placed 5th in both kahiko and 'auana. And the kane of Halau I Ka Wekiu and kumu hula Karl Veto Baker and Michael Casupang placed second in the kahiko category.
Hana hou, Hilo hula! They all love the festival
April 3, 2005 / Honolulu Advertiser / Wanda A. AdamsThis morning, as Hilo empties of hundreds of Merrie Monarch Festival participants, some will sigh with relief, others with a touch of regret.
The relief is that of Hiloans who love the "Christmas in April" bump in business that Merrie Monarch brings, but are happy to get their quiet city back after it's over.
"Every year, we work, work, work, especially Wednesday to Saturday. It's crazy," said Valene Nobriga, whose family operates a small flower business. "Monday after Merrie Monarch, we don't take any orders. We just sleep."
The regret is that — after months of anticipation and preparation — it's over.
"We have just always wanted to get here and this year we finally did," said Cathy Morinaga of Honolulu, whose auntie and uncle scored scarce tickets to the hula competition.
Yesterday morning, the family was planning to attend the annual parade and then do some shopping, but Morinaga was already feeling a little sad.
"Four days seemed like a long time, but it's gone so fast. The hula we've seen is just so incredible, I don't want it to end."
The effects of the Merrie Monarch Festival on Hilo are difficult to quantify, but they are profound.
"The better question might be to ask what part of Hilo the Merrie Monarch does NOT impact. We'd have a much shorter answer," said Richard Nelson, president-elect of the local Chamber of Commerce and owner of a marketing firm, Hawaii Bizlink, which promotes Island products at trade shows around the world.
Nelson had not seen exact statistics, but, he said "the hotels are filled, the flights are booked, the restaurants are packed and the supermarkets are busy."
Na'alehu artist Nancy Lake says the official Merrie Monarch craft fair is the best one of the year for her — both economically and because it's a chance to spend time with a variety of interesting people, from international visitors to dancers who drop by to purchase one of her "Hula is life. Life is hula" wall plaques.
Her husband, Dennis, is an 'ukulele maker who enjoys the chance to talk about the instruments with knowledgeable folks.
The sale at the Ahfook-Chinen Civic Center has become a brisk marketplace for handmade Hawaiian musical instruments, hula implements, and carved and woven items, many of them purchased by members of Japanese halau, who visit the event in large numbers, have deep pockets and do lots of shopping.
But when clothing designer Sig Zane speaks of the effect of Merrie Monarch on Hilo, he's not just talking about the immense spike in business at his downtown Hilo retail store, or the customers who discover his designs and then continue to visit online, or the many hula schools that use his dresses in performance or as halau uniforms.
Zane says the Merrie Monarch is a sort of social ecotourism event. "It really showcases Hilo's lifestyle," he said, mentioning the flower markets, the okazu-ya and other small businesses that illustrate the influence of Japanese immigrants on the area, as well as the colors and geographical features that differ from the typical white-sand beaches elsewhere in Hawai'i.
More important still to Zane is the cultural critical mass formed by the concentration of hula experts in one place.
The clothing designer said Hilo's understanding of Merrie Monarch has evolved. "In early years, we just thought about it from the economic standpoint, but now we see that it's a wonderful resource, this gathering of teachers."
Zane, whose wife is kumu hula Nalani Kanaka'ole, said the teachers interact with students and with each other in a relaxed way — rare opportunities in busy lives. Some also share their wisdom in events such as the free lectures given last week at Hilo's Lyman Museum by geneaology specialist Edith Kawelohea McKinzie on Hilo families and place names.
Cazimero celebrates return to Merrie Monarch with overall title
April 3, 2005 / Honolulu Advertiser / Advertiser StaffAs the more verbal member of the musical Brothers Cazimero, Robert Cazimero is the glib one, generally overflowing with easy words.
As the kumu hula of the halau that won the upset overall award in the Merrie Monarch Festival hula competition Saturday night, however, Cazimero was quiet, thoughtful and clearly very surprised. Even if he could have expected to place well in the kane (men's) division, it's unusual for a men's halau to garner enough total points to be the overall winner. And though his Halau Na Kamalei was clearly a crowd favorite, that's not guarantee of approval from the judges.
"I am mainly so proud of my students. I really only came back for them," he said, referring to the fact that he broke his own rule of only doing Merrie Monarch every 10 years because he wanted to give his students the chance to celebrate the halau's 30th anniversary there, especially two who are from the original Halau Na Kamalei, started in 1975.
He joked that he was delighted to have them see that, even as you get old and "things start to go — your knees, your sight, everything — you still have things to look forward to."
He said one of his students had asked, "where do we go from here?" He answered, "Panaewa (where the halau is staying) — to party, and then tomorrow is another day."
But he admitted that Saturday was an exceptionally good day.
"In a lot of things in life, you work hard and you don't get a nod. This is more than a nod. It's humbling, it's outstanding," he said, standing on the stage, having completed a round of thank you kisses of the judges, the TV announcers, competitor "Sonny" Ching of Halau Na Mamo O Pu'uanahulu, and a trio of lei-bedecked aunties how fussed over him like proud parents.
Meanwhile, Ching, who was the only kumu hula to be called to the stage in every one one of the six divisions, was expressing delight over the victory in the wahine division of his good friends the Lim family, who had helped Ching's halau prepare for the competition. And he was worrying over his alaka'i, Lopaka Igarta-De Vera, whose ankle "just popped" Friday night. He'd been rushed to Hilo hospital after competition, but performed with the men's halau nevertheless. "If I can just get my halau home in once piece, I'll be happy," he said.
Six Different Arts, Crafts shows in Hilo - Biggest show in Afook-Chinen Civic Auditorium
April 2, 2005 / West Hawaii Today / Hunter Bishop, Stephens Media GroupFrom Prince Kuhio Plaza to Sangha Hall, crowds of Merrie Monarch fans are browsing and buying some of Hawaii's finest arts and crafts this week.
The growing market for handcrafted Hawaiian products has spawned six different arts and crafts shows this week scattered about Hilo during the 42nd annual Merrie Monarch Festival, which concludes Saturday night.
The biggest of the shows is the annual Invitational Merrie Monarch Hawaiian Arts and Crafts Show in the Afook-Chinen Civic Auditorium and nearby Butler Building. Thursday, on the sidewalk outside, as local musicians tuned their strings for a sweet version of "Baby Kalae," the fragrant smell of hundreds of flower leis on display made the warm, muggy air a luxurious experience.
Inside, woodcarver Al Heneralau was in a familiar place among the 100 vendors. The disabled vet has been displaying his work for more than 20 years.
"Back then it was in the Seven Seas (Luau House)," he said. "We had to break down everything at the end of every day so the halau could use it for a dressing room. Here we can leave things up and they have security at night."
One of his specialties is a hand-carved spray of anthuriums. "I'm the only one in the whole state that makes milo and koa flowers," he said. Yesterday, the first day of the show, he said, all were gone before 10 a.m.
The unofficial "Kupuna of Kalaupapa," otherwise known as Puna Kaaialii-Ramos, used to perform hula but, "in my day we didn't have the Merrie Monarch," said the 74-year-old Molokai resident who works for the National Park Service in Kalaupapa.
"It's exciting to come to these and talk story with people you meet," she said.
She introduced a new friend to Herb Kaanehe, her former neighbor in Waianae, Oahu, and met Big Island friends she had not seen in some time such as Emily Naole of Puna.
"I like to look at everything," she said. "I bought a lei from a woman who said she almost cries sometimes when people buy them. So I knew her heart was in it."
Merrie Monarch "junkie" Roselyn Smith said this was her 22nd year in a row that she will attend all four nights of Merrie Monarch performances.
"I would travel the world to come to the Merrie Monarch," said Smith, who lives in Hilo. "It's the most colorful, most artistic, ... the creativity is palpable.
"Kudos to Dottie Thompson for keeping it affordable," she praised the festival director. "Where else in the world can you get something like this for $5 a ticket?"
Hawaiian music also filled the air outside the Hilo Hawaiian Hotel as entertainers from nearby Uncle Billy's floated over the parking lot. Inside the Hilo Hawaiian, a steady stream of performers entertained a crowd in the downstairs lobby, where more local crafts were on display.
Only Lesa Adams was disheartened among those interviewed Thursday. "Yesterday was very slow," said the maker of Hawaiian feather hat leis, jewelry and hair accessories, who was set up in the Hilo Shopping Center's indoor mall Thursday afternoon. As business began to pick up some, the Volcano artist said it was her first time in that location so she wasn't sure what to expect.
Across the aisle, however, Shirlene Iwai of Oceanview was afraid she would run out of the natural-looking "forever leis" she weaves from yarns for hats woven by her friend Ellen Cullen. "We're running out of hats and leis," she said, following a quick flurry of sales.
"What I've done in two days is more than I made last year," Iwai said. "People are feeling a little more comfortable. I think I have enough to last through Saturday. I'll be better prepared next year."
To evoke her soft side, dance came from heart
April 2, 2005 / Honolulu Advertiser / Wanda A. AdamsWhen kumu hula Sonny Ching chose a chant for Maile Francisco to perform as Miss Aloha Hula candidate for Halau Na Mamo O Pu'uanahulu, he didn't know how the topic would touch Francisco's heart.
The rest, he says, was the work of "Ke Akua" — God. And the result was the third Miss Aloha Hula victory in a row for his halau, announced amid shouts and tears at Thursday's opening night of the Merrie Monarch Festival hula competition.
Ching thought he was giving his longtime student a challenge: a type of dance that would require her to develop her skills further — one that didn't work to her strengths or preferences, but to the potential he saw in her.
He had no idea how much of a challenge this chant — spoken by a woman who loves her faithless husband so much, she sets him free despite her own heartbreak — would be for Francisco, or how deeply she would have to dig to find her way to the core of the dance's story.
Ching has known Francisco, 23, since she was a member of his keiki hula troupe, performing in a Hula 'Oni E competition in a ridiculous high hairdo that forever earned that group of hula sisters the nickname "coneheads."
He and his principal assistant, Lopaka Igarta-De Vera, knew Francisco as the class clown, the pa'akiki (stubborn) one, the one who hid any hurts or tenderness under a tough exterior.
Both knew she loved explosive, gutsy kahiko (traditional) roles: the songs about the jealousies of imperious Pele or the sexy exploits of the pig-demigod Kamapua'a.
But Ching decided not to give the tough girl the in-your-face hula. He wanted to tease out her softer side.
What he didn't know was that Francisco had just ended a long-term relationship and was concealing an aching heart.
"It was meant to be for me to do that kahiko," Francisco said early yesterday morning as she sat at breakfast with her hula sisters and her teachers. All were bundled against the cold of a Volcano morning, since the Ching halau shuns the chaos of Hilo for a quiet retreat at the Kilauea military recreational camp.
But the warmth of victory shone in their eyes and easy laughter that flowed around the table. Every few minutes, someone would come up to congratulate Francisco with a hug and to wish Ching a happy "29 again" birthday.
Francisco said having to admit her pain, explore it, and then master it sufficiently to use it for the dance, taught her a lot about herself. "Before, the thing I didn't remember was to respect myself. I thought I should put up with whatever somebody did to me. This taught me that I am better than that; I can love someone but I can let them go. It took me a lot to realize that," she said.
Ching's eyes overflowed as Francisco spoke. "If Kumu had not chosen that mele for me, I probably would have kept it all inside me — but because of this, I kind of overflowed and I found out I could share my feelings and not have a total breakdown."
Well, there was the time that she started crying during rehearsal and spent an hour in the bathroom with hula sisters Jennifer Oyama (Miss Aloha Hula 2003) and Natasha Akau (Miss Aloha Hula 2004) while Ching and Igarta-De Vera drummed their fingers.
But that's just the stuff of a good laugh now.
Francisco credits Oyama and Akau with "defining" her — studying her every move and offering advice to refine each one. To Igarta-De Vera, she gives credit for conditioning — he helped her melt some puppy fat. And to Ching goes the credit for choosing the songs and teaching them to her.
"They were all four like my parents," she said.
"Yes," Oyama said. "Now I know what 'Paka and Kumu feel like when we go out on stage."
"I was ready to cry before she even started dancing," Igarta-De Vera said.
"I was holding her hand and I realized she's not shaking, I'm shaking," Ching recalled.
It isn't only Francisco who found the Miss Aloha Hula journey an enlightening one: Her brother Kapua, a 12-year veteran of the halau and longtime alaka'i (teaching assistant), said his life is forever changed by knowing more about their family's history. When it was decided to choose a medley of Kohala songs for her 'auana number, because both sides of her family have connections there, he learned that vague stories of ali'i blood have a basis in fact.
Wednesday, the Lim family of Kohala gave halau a tour of the area that made him prouder of his heritage than he's ever felt, he said. The trip also, he's convinced, "put that finishing touch on her performance."
"The finishing mana (spiritual power)," his sister added.
The two hugged, Kapua towering over her. The family joke is that she is so small because she always made it late to the table and her two elder brothers got the grinds before her.
Though the teachers kept the siblings apart during much of the rehearsal time — because family members can be the most critical of each otherÊ— Kapua Francisco was allowed to join Ching and Igarta-De Vera in the chant to accompany her kahiko performance.
And it was a good thing, too, because the other two were so mesmerized by Francisco's performance that they couldn't open their mouths when it was time to chant the ho'i (closing piece); Kapua sang out the first line alone until they got their feelings in check.
Francisco, who lives with her mother and and other family members in Kaimuki, had to drop out of business college to prepare for Miss Aloha Hula, and she won't be going back anytime soon. Miss Aloha Hula has become almost a franchise: Oyama and Akau traveled to Japan almost monthly last year. "Our phone was ringing all the time, but it wasn't for us," Ching said, cheerfully.
Yesterday and today, like her hula sisters before her, Francisco was expected to be in the line, stretching and running through basics, preparing to rehearse for the halau's ensemble performances.
"It still hasn't sunk in," she said. "I heard my name on the radio this morning as Miss Aloha Hula and I couldn't believe that was me."
Hula Kahiko Competition Warmly Welcomes Both Old and New
April 2, 2005 / Honolulu Star Bulletin / Gary C.W. ChunThe hula kahiko portion of the 42nd Annual Merrie Monarch Festival took place with anticipation for the return, after a decade's absence, of Robert Cazimero's kane hula halau.
Halau Na Kamalei began the second portion of last night's competition with "Kahikilani," about a surfer from Kauai who, when he arrives on Oahu to surf the waves of Paumalu on the north shore, falls in love with the goddess Kaiulani.
Celebrating their 30th anniversary, Cazimero's men told their story with purpose and measured vigor in their white hau skirts.
They transfixed the audience, epitomizing why they and their venerated kumu hula are at the top of their game.
Cazimero was seen earlier backstage giving out hugs and kisses to former students Karl Veto Baker and Michael Casupang, who performed "Ku'u Wahine o Na Lehua" with their own Halau I Ka Wekiu.
The first portion of last evening's competition was highlighted by the warm reception the audience gave for Honolulu's Snowbird Bento, who brought her kane and wahine of Ka Pa Hula O Ka Lei Lehua to the festival for the first time.Halau Na Lei Kaumaka O Uka of Kula, Maui, danced and chanted the first portion of their "Kahiko Ka Nani i Lihau" while sitting along the front of the stage before the judges and on the two flanking ramps, a rare sight at the festival. The mele inoa was written for Princess Ka'iulani by her mother, Likelike, while on Maui.
Early highlights included the shimmering skirts worn by the wahine of Halau Hula O Hokulani, all moving smoothly in unison in close quarters.
Fine work was done by kumu hula Kapu Kinimaka-Alquiza's Na Hula 'O Kaohikukapulani of Hanapepe, Kauai.
The 16 wahine chanted with assertion and executed some complicated synchronized movement throughout "Nani Wale no 'O Pele I ka Lua."
From Los Angeles, the wahine of Keali'i Ceballos' Halau Keali'i O Nalani offered sparkling smiles while dancing in tapa skirts, a good presentation done with verve and cleanly executed.
Miss Aloha Hula Overcame a Broken Heart to Win Crown
April 2, 2005 / Honolulu Star Bulletin / Gary C.W. ChunThe criteria for entering the Miss Aloha Hula competition in the annual Merrie Monarch Festival are the following: Must be between 18 and 25, unmarried and have no children.
Implicit in those simple rules is that the young woman must focus all her energies on her hula kahiko and hula ëauana presentations before the panel of judges during that eveningís event, without any distractions.
Last night's winner, Maile Emily Kauëilanionapuaehiëipolokeanuenueokola Francisco, overcame a broken heart and dug into the truest meaning of ohana to win.
Jeri-Lynn Kealolahilahi Koko of Ka Leo O Laka I Ka Hikina O Ka La in Honolulu came in second while Kaiwipunikauikawekiu Punihei Anthony of Halau O Ke ëAëaliëi Ku Makani in Kaneohe finished third.
Francisco is the third consecutive dancer from William Sonny Chingís Halau Na Mamo O Puëuanahulu, from Honolulu, to win the coveted title.Natasha Mahealani Akau won the title last year and Jennifer Kehaulani Oyama won in 2003. The three-peat for Chingís halau is topped only by the four consecutive Miss Aloha Hula titles won by Johnny Lum Hoís halau in the 1980s.
So the late-night victory bus ride back to their remote headquarters at the Kilauea Military Camp in Volcanoes National Park was an especially sweet one for Francisco, Ching and his ala kaëi (assistant) Lopaka Igarta De Vera.
Francisco said, "youíd think I was feeling a lot of pressure, but it was more to inspire me."
She emphatically added, "I hope people didnít expect me to win just because my two previous hula sisters did."The 25-year-old has been dancing for 11 years in Chingís halau, starting at 4 years of age with her first kumu hula, Leimomi Ho, whom she stayed with until she turned a teenager.
Francisco, Oyama and Akau joined Chingís halau at the same time. Unbeknownst to Francisco, Ching had plans to groom the trio to vie for the Miss Aloha Hula title when they came of age.
"In fact, when Jennifer won in 2003, kumu told me ëget ready,í Francisco said.
"It was all part of a three-year cycle plan," added Ching.
As the two hugged each other, Ching admits that, "for her, the pressure to follow up was tremendous, but I told her, donít worry, focus your thoughts. But it was a challenge to meet the expectations placed on her and me."
"She surprised us," De Vera added. "But we knew she had it, that kumu had something special. The excitement of her win tonight has rubbed off on the rest of the halau," anticipating the group competition tonight and tomorrow.
Francisco said that before preparing for the Miss Aloha Hula competition, she was "on a hula crossroads."
"I had been through some real emotional times recently, but I had to push it to the side in preparation of Merrie Monarch. What had to happen was my kuleana, my problem, and part of the preparation was to make ourselves pono."My kahiko (ëAia I Kohala Kaëu Alohaí) told what had sort of happened to me in a similar experience. My boyfriend was fooling around behind my back, and I could relate to my danceís story of a womanís love for a man who is having an affair with someone else."
All this happened while Francisco was preparing for the hula festival, but in January, the two broke up.
"In doing the dance, I felt I was taking control of my feelings, being stronger to be able to share my feelings, not losing myself and having a breakdown. I know itís an experience like everyone has.
"And with my 'auana (a medley of songs about her hometown of Kohala), it reminds me that my family there will always be there to back me up," she said.
Important Musicians Offer Support at 42nd Annual Merrie Monarch
April 1, 2005 / West Hawaii Today / John Burnett, Stephens Media GroupHula is the nexus during the Merrie Monarch Festival, so it may sometimes go unnoticed that many of the islands' brightest stars are playing music for the halau while they perform.
In the hula kahiko, or ancient hula, the vocal accompaniment is chanted, ususally by the kumu hula of the performing halau. But in the hula auana, or modern hula, some of Hawaii's most popular and beloved musicians take a secondary role while the dancers are center stage.
Some of the musicians performing in the 42nd annual Merrie Monarch Festival include 17-time Hoku award winner Kealii Reichel, arguably the biggest living star in Hawaiian music. Reichel, a Mauian and himself a kumu hula, will be performing for Kealii Ceballos' Halau Kealii O Nalani from Los Angeles.
Other name performers accompanying halau include the Makaha Sons, Raiatea Helm and Na Palapalai.
Robert Cazimero's halau, Na Kamalei, is celebrating its 30th year. Cazimero, half of the legendary duo the Brothers Cazimero, will be accompanying his halau with brother Roland, Kaipo Hale, head of he Hawaiian Studies Institute at Kamehameha Schools, Hoku Zuttermeister, an accomplished singer and musician who is performing with several ensembles accompanying halau during this year's festival, and Keao Costa, a member of the popular trio Na Palapalai. Cazimero said that even though the musicians take a back seat to the dancers at the Merrie Monarch and other hula festivals, the music is vital to the dance performances."It goes hand-in-hand, the music and the dance," Cazimero said. "It's a nice marriage. And particularly for 'auana, great music can make you and less-than-great music can break you."
Cazimero's men will dance to "Kona Kai Opua," by Henry Waiau, a mele pana (place song) with a rich kaona (metaphoric subtext) that tells of the love between Liholiho (Kamehameha II) and a noblewoman, presumably his third and favorite wife, Kamamalu, who was also his half-sister.
Cazimero, like most kumu, prefers to rehearse his halau with live music, but says that is not always possible. He admits that sometimes, during rehearsals, the jobs of musician and choreographer conflict.
"Sometimes that happens when I'm teaching and trying to do two things at one time," he said. "But onstage when the performance is actually happening, I cannot concentrate on (the dancers). They know their job; they just have to do it. By the time they get onstage, they should know everything. My job is just to play the music."Last year's overall wahine winners, Kohala's Na Lei O Kaholoku, also doesn't have to go far to find musicians. The kumu hula are Nani Lim-Yap and Leialoha Amina of the Lim family, another established music ensemble. Lim-Yap says she cannot conceive of either performing or rehearsing to prerecorded music.
"It has to be live because there's such a connection to it," she said. "The dance and the music have to flow together."
Lim-Yap said that her halau will dance auana to the John K. Alameida song "O Ko'u Aloha Ia 'Oe," which she describes as "one of my favorites from way back."
In addition to the sisters, the family musical group also consists of sister Lorna Lim and brother Sonny Lim, a former member of the Makaha Sons who is one of 10 featured guitarists on the CD "Slack Key Guitar Volume 2," which won the inaugural Grammy Award for Best Hawaiian Album in February.
"This year, it will be Nani, Lorna and me," Lim said. "And Lani's husband will be playing; and Leialoha, the other kumu hula, her husband will be playing." It's "The Lim Family and the Brothers-in-Law." The "Brothers-in-Law" for those keeping score, are Ed Yap, Wailau Ryder and Melvin Amina. Amina was also a band mate of Lim's in the early days of the Makaha Sons.
Another kumu hula playing music for his halau is Manu Boyd. Leader of the Hoku-award winning group Ho'okena, Boyd is often described as a Hawaiian Renaissance Man.
Publications editor of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs by day, for years he was the expert hula commentator for KITV's statewide broadcast of the festival. He bowed out of the broadcast last year to bring his Halau o ke Aalii Ku Makani to Hilo to compete. They are back again this year.
While Hookena has performed many years at the Merrie Monarch, even while Boyd had on-air duties, this year the lineup will be a little different. Band member Chris Kamaka will be in Japan, so Boyd will play with Ho'okena band mates, plus Zuttermeister. The latter will sing the traditional mele pana "Moanalua" for the halau's auana performance.
"When we did that for one of the concerts that we performed last year, it was the first time Hoku saw it with dance. He sings it all the time, so I said, 'We've got to do this in Hilo,'" Boyd recalled. "So it will be me, Glen (Smith), Horace (Dudoit) and Hoku for the 'auana. The same four will sing for Miss Aloha Hula, but we'll also have a young woman in our halau, Noelani Naluai-Crail, who is a solo soprano, and she's going to be singing for her hula sister in the solo competition.
"Coming from all my years in Na Kamalei with Robert, it was always a given that we had good music, so when I had my own halau, I knew I had to uphold that and ensure that the music that we create is good, so the hula is supported properly."
Boyd said that while the energy is different at the Merrie Monarch than at a concert where the attendees are there primarily for music, there is another great perk to playing music at the festival.
"Merrie Monarch is one of our favorite performances because of the sound system," he explained. "The sound is so big. One of the highlights for Ho'okena is to see (sound engineers) Piggy Kaleohano and Glenn Yafuso at the practice and then again at the concert because we know it's going to be booming and we feel like rock stars playing on the big system there. It's very cool."
Young women shine with dances in the kahiko and 'auana categories
April 1, 2005 / Honolulu Star Bulletin / Gary C.W. ChunMaile Emily Kau'ilanionapuaehi'ipoiokeanuenueokeola Francisco was the last performer in the Miss Aloha Hula competition last night.
But Francisco was first in the eyes of the judges as she brought home the third straight win for kumu hula Sonny Ching's Halau Na Mamo O Pu'uanahulu of Honolulu.
Coming in second place was Jeri-Lynn Kealolahilahi Koko of Ka Leo o Laka i Ka Hikina o Ka La, who entered her first and -- at age 25, the cutoff for competing for Miss Aloha Hula in the Merrie Monarch Festival -- final attempt at the title.
And with two sterling performances in the hula kahiko and hula 'auana categories, the daughter of Jerome Koko (who with his fellow Makaha Sons accompanied his daughter in song on "Ke Aloha") shone last evening at Edith Kanaka'ole Tennis Stadium.
With the glorious tones and close harmonies of the Sons behind her, Koko expressed with such aloha a mele meant as a gift for a couple just married. That aloha was extended to the audience packed into the stadium, who responded with equal warmth.
Koko's smile and grace were also evident in her earlier hula kahiko in tribute to Kamehameha's most sacred wife, "Hanau 'o Keopuolani." She projected her oli with strength and was fluid and confident in her dance.
Also impressive last night during the Miss Aloha Hula competition was Rashanti Kiana 'A'ali'i Ka'awaloa of Halau O Ke 'Anuenue. Her dramatic hula kahiko, "He 'Olelo Ho'oiki Aloha Na Pele," told how the village of Kalapana got its name.
Eighteen-year-old Pohaikau'ilani Nu'uhiwa of veteran Aloha Dalire's Keolalaulani Halau 'Olapa O Laka made a bold presentation of her hula kahiko in honor of the goddess Keaomelemele, backed by some of her fellow wahine on drums, including former Miss Aloha Hula Keola Dalire, and the elder Dalire herself in regal repose onstage.
Earlier in the evening, the international impact of the festival was manifest by the line of Japanese tourists, mainly women, waiting to enter the stadium two hours before it started, ready to jump into the best general-admission seats available. It seemed that many of the volunteer staff could speak some Japanese to help welcome visitors. And most of them came dressed elegantly and bedecked with leis. During the competition, a couple of women studied the dancing wahine intently, even using opera glasses and taking down notes.
Television co-host Paula Akana, working in that capacity for her 14th year, commented that one thing she has noticed over the years is that "the strength of the Hawaiian language is really evident, with so much more application. The use of the language is strong, and looking at the synchronizing of the dance in the group competition, the halau really come prepared."
The evening was made more pleasant by the coolness, despite the hot glare of the stage and television lights. May Holokai of Waianae was a returnee this year. "My grandson picked me up early so I could stand in line early and save some bleacher seats, just like for a Waianae football game.
"I like tonight and Saturday night (the 'auana competition), where the kumu get up and take part in the festivities."
Holokai was part of an attentive, respectful and knowledgeable audience, the truest hula aficionados.
Get a handle on hula
March 31, 2005 / Honolulu Advertiser / Wanda A. AdamsThe Merrie Monarch Festival hula competition is the most-watched locally produced TV event, and tickets to the actual competition in Hilo are highly sought after. Most Islanders see at least a portion of the three-night extravaganza, which begins at 6 p.m. today with the Miss Aloha Hula competition.
But if you've not taken hula, and if you don't speak Hawaiian, it can be a little hard to get beyond the surface. Granted, the adornments are beautiful and the motions stirring or alluring, whether or not you understand the story or the dance. But a little more layering can add to the experience.
Here's a bit of help.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR IN PERFORMANCES
They say to keep your eyes on the hands, but those with ma'a (understanding of) hula, watch the whole body. In general, watch for:
Hands
In kahiko (traditional style), women hold hands open, men closed; motions are often stronger, more rigid and abrupt. In women's 'auana (modern style), hands are gently curved, motions flow.Eyes"Kuhi no ka lima, hele no ka maka," goes the saying: "Where the hands move, let the eyes follow." Gaze may also follow the invisible subject of the song as it's conjured by the motions of the hands.FaceFace should be expressive without over-dramatizing.ShouldersIn general, the upper body is still. Changes in elevation are carried out by the knees or feet, rarely by shrugging or hunching, never by bouncing or bobbing.Feet/knees/hipsThe standard hula position is feet flat, knees bent. The weight is canted over one foot, leaving the other free to initiate the next motion. It is this rhythmic weight transfer from flat foot to flat foot that creates the hula ka'o (the side-to-side sway of the hips).More to look for: In group hula, scan for uniformity of movement. In chanted hula, uniformity of speaking is prized.
HAWAIIAN PHRASES
If you've lived in Hawai'i for a while and are sensitive to language, you've probably noticed certain phrases recur during hula performances and in both 'oli (chants) and mele (songs) and wondered what they meant.
Here are a few to know:
Pa!: If you attend rehearsal, you may hear the kumu tersely order "Pa!" a command to begin dancing. Among its many meanings, pa also indicates an enclosure (in which the dance takes place) and a beat or rhythm of the dance.
E makaukau? (ay ma-kow-kow): The kumu hula calls this question — "Ready?" Or the kumu might say "E ho'omakaukau!" a command to get ready. The dancers' answer in a drawn-out, " 'Ae!" ("Yes!). In kahiko (traditional) performance, the question signals the opening of the chant, and the dancers answer with a line that identifies the subject of the chant.
He inoa no Hi'iaka-i-ka-poli-o-Pele (hay e-know-ah no he-ee-ah-ka ee ka polee o peh-lay): "A name song for Hi'iaka in the bosom of Pele." You'll hear this often at Merrie Monarch because many songs concern the sister of Pele and her deeds on behalf of the fire goddess. Hi'iaka is so named because she is said to have been incubated as an egg held close in Pele's armpit, and because of the closeness of the two.
Ha'ina (ha-ee-na): Hundreds of mele, both older and modern, end with a phrase beginning with the word "ha'ina,, which means a saying, declaration or statement but has come to indicate a song's final two verses, which restate the song's subject or purpose. "Ha'ina 'ia mai ana ka puana." "Tell the story in the refrain." There are at least a half-dozen forms of ha'ina lines, variously translated as "tell the refrain," "the tale is told," "this is the end of my song."
'Auhea wale 'oe (ow hay-ah vah-lay oh-ay): This common phrase opens many songs. It means, variously, "Where are you?" or "There are you ..." "Where could you be?" and even "Oh, do pay heed." It often signals a mele aloha, or love song.
By the way, if you hear a song that you'd like to learn more about, the largest archive of Hawaiian music lyrics, with translation, is www.huapala.org, which also has a helpful guide to hula terms, implements and so on.
Sources: "Na Mele 'Welo," translated by Mary Kawena Pukui (UH Press, 1995); "He Mele Aloha," by Wilcox, et al. ('Oli'oli, 2003); "Hawaiian Music and Musicians," by George S. Kanahele (UH Press, 1979)
MERRIE MONARCH TIDBITS
2005 Color: Royal blue
2005 Lei: Palapalai, pukiawe, a'ali'i
Coming back: Robert Cazimero's Halau Na Kamalei for their once-a-decade appearance
New this year: Na kumu hula Snowbird Bento, Rich Pedrina and Hulali Solomon Covington
Where's Johnny Lum Ho?: Judging again
Odd facts: Two halau will employ the same song but in different divisions. And Halau Mohala 'Ilima is doing "Alekoki" in both traditional and modern styles.
HULA IMPLEMENTS
These are some rhythm-makers you may see:
Ka'eke'eke: Bamboo pipes tapped on ground
'Ili'ili: River stones used like castanets
Ipu heke: Double gourd, standard rhythm keeper
Ipu heke 'ole: Single, hand-held gourd
Kala'au: Tapping sticks of varying lengths
Kupe'e niho 'ilio: Dog's-tooth anklet, leg rattle
Pahu: Standing drum of coconut wood, sharkskin head
Pu'ili: Split-end bamboo tapping stick
Puniu: Small-head drum tied to leg, struck with ka, braided dried ti leaf
'Uli'uli: Gourd rattle with or without feather trim
Source: "The Art of Hula," Allan Seiden (Island Heritage, 1999)
The Merrie Monarch Festival attracts people from around the world
March 31, 2005 / Honolulu Star Bulletin / Rod ThompsonDottie Thompson, director of Hilo's annual Merrie Monarch Festival, has no idea of how much money the event contributes to the Big Island economy.
But with 5,000 people attending, she knows it's a lot.
Just as important, it also contributes to people's spirits.
"We're Hawaiians and they eat a lot, and they've got to buy a present for all their moopuna (grandchildren). They are spenders," she said.
The hula festival was created in 1964 to help pull Hilo's economy out of the slump caused by the devastation of the 1960 tsunami. It has succeeded amply.
The 42nd presentation of the festival this week has people coming from as far away as Japan and Europe. East Hawaii hotels and bed-and-breakfasts are sold out, and that means some attendees are lodged in Kona.
But more than filling pocketbooks, Merrie Monarch fills spirits.
"Merrie Monarch allows people to see an art form that belongs to their heritage and is a living art that reflects who they were with pride and who they are with pride," said Kimo Kahoano, a KITV commentator of the festival for 25 years.
Hula master Ray Fonseca said hula is a way for Hawaiians to assert their cultural identity.
"Our young people today are getting back to their roots, as opposed to the system we live in," he said. "We see more and more young people going into the arts, going into hula, as a recovery."
George Naope, one of the festival's founders, said: "Hula is inner feelings. They don't belong to somebody else."
Naope was one of two people sent to Maui in 1963 by Hawaii County Chief Executive Helene Hale to consider creating something like the Lahaina Whaler's Spree.
That was a rowdy event that lasted just two years, but when Merrie Monarch began in Hilo in 1964, it had some of the same elements, such as a Grog Shoppe. Another element was hula, provided as entertainment. The original "merrie monarch," King Kalakaua, was featured in the form of a Kalakaua look-alike contest.
Penny Vredenburg, a Hilo High schoolgirl at the time, said Hilo was enchanted by the new festival. She made plumeria leis for it, selling some for 25 cents, giving away others.
"I've never stopped being energized by it," said Vredenburg, who has served for years as emcee for several Merrie Monarch events.
But official support faltered until Thompson, a culture and arts specialist with Hawaii County, volunteered to chair the festival, a position she has held ever since.
In 1971 the first competition was held. The contestants were all women. Performances by men were added in 1978.
Initially, most of the performances were auana, or modern hula. Studios that taught ancient hula were rare.
In the pre-European Hawaiian kingdom, commoners were not allowed to do hula, Fonseca said. Through the 19th century, except for Kalakaua's reign, and during territorial days of the 20th century, hula was done only within the family, he said.
Now performances in Merrie Monarch require both skill and cultural understanding.
"We've advanced so much in the culture," Fonseca said. He has been to Bishop Museum to listen to old chants recorded on wax cylinders.
Other times, he has gone to Kauai to listen to old stories that can be transformed into dance. "They tell you the stories, and then you take it from there," he said.
Now the knowledge goes far beyond Hawaii. Fonseca advises a dozen halaus in Mexico. Shari Berinobis' book, "The Spirit of Hula," lists halaus in Germany and the Netherlands.
Thompson said performances by a halau from Japan are as good as local performances. "That's how good our hula instructors from Hawaii are teaching them," she said.
The dancers of Ka Leo O Laka I Ka Hikina O Ka La take time to honor Pele with hulas
March 31, 2005 / Honolulu Star Bulletin / Gary C.W. ChunOn a rainy morning at the Edith Kanaka'ole Tennis Stadium yesterday, Kaleo Trinidad and the kane of his hula halau had just finished a run-through of their dance that will be performed tomorrow night as part of this year's Merrie Monarch Festival.
Trinidad was not happy with what he saw transpire in front of him while onstage.
"Let's hula!" he barked. "C'mon, focus on what you're doing. What's the point of this practice? Turn around," he told his young men, who had already exited the stage. "Let's do it again."
Trinidad's halau, Ka Leo O Laka I Ka Hikina O Ka La, is just one of the many halaus that take advantage of the hour allotted each group this day to hone their performance for the vaunted competition, all under the watchful eye of Luana Thompson, the daughter of the festival's originator and matriarch, Dottie Thompson.
The young men responded to Trinidad's vociferous commands, most of them readying themselves by stripping off their red T-shirts emblazoned with the words "Ku I Ka Pono: Justice for Hawaiians." And it resulted in a better-focused "'O 'oe Ia e Kekuhaupi'o," their hula kahiko offering for Friday night, a mele inoa for the chief, warrior, friend and mentor of Kamehameha I.
When they were pau, Trinidad turned his attention to his wahine, who will be in competition for the first time this year at the festival, along with their Miss Aloha Hula candidate, Jeri-Lynn Kealolahilani Koko.
In a hula competition where placement in the evenings' programs is everything, Trinidad's kane, who performed near the beginning of last year's hula kahiko competition, are now in the second half after intermission, when the featured halaus perform. The same goes for his wahine.The young ladies went through the paces of their hula auana, buoyed by the music of the Makaha Sons.
Then Koko, 25, even with pink curlers wrapped in locks of her hair, danced with a radiance to "Ke Aloha," especially in light of her being Makaha Son Jerome Koko's daughter.The rest of the Trinidad halau were lining the front of the stage while she danced, occasionally breaking out in supportive applause.
A graduate of formal hula ceremonies under kumu hula Holoua Stender, Trinidad said he has been kumu hula himself for 2 1/2 years.
Participating in this year's Merrie Monarch Festival with more dancers, he realizes how much tougher it is for him. "Last year was a wonderful thing, and this year, after being invited back in January, there's so much more work to do."
Of his own lessons learned as the leader of his own halau, Trinidad said: "No one person does it all. It takes a team, a hui, a group of people to make it happen, whether they be family, friends who help pick flowers or work all night fixing dresses. It's wonderful that everyone is willing to help."
After the Honolulu halau returned to temporary headquarters in Kurtistown to recuperate, the group of former and current Kamehameha Schools students loaded up in four vans and headed to Volcanoes National Park later that afternoon.
Last year, Trinidad took his kane to the Halemaumau Crater lookout to honor Pele with dance. This time, the vans detoured to a little-used side road leading to the Kilauea caldera site.
"We look at Pele as an ancestor, part of our genealogy, our family line. And since we're here, we dance for her as she is manifested through this volcano," he said.
In the biting wind and occasional showers, the young men got out of their street clothes and into their malos. Trinidad located the right spot just off a path near the lookout that made for an appropriate impromptu hula pa.
As the halau performed the competition and other hulas for Pele, the sound of oli, ipu and drums mixed with the swishing of ti leaf skirts, most then an aging brown, and the sound of slippered feet crunching down on cooled lava rock as they danced.
When Koko did her hula, the rain temporarily stopped, the wind died and the sun peeked out of the gray cloud mass ever so slightly.
After a mele mai for Kamehameha and posing for a group photo, the rain came back, stronger this time ("a blessing," Trinidad would say later), as everyone scurried back to the parked vans.
And there were to be more rehearsals that night.
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