The 61st annual Merrie Monarch Festival shifted into high gear on Wednesday night with the Ho‘ike, an exhibition of hula and folk dance from around the Pacific Rim at Edith Kanaka‘ole Multi-Purpose Stadium in Hilo.
As they have every year since 1997, Halau O Kekuhi was the first troupe to perform.
Under the direction of na kumu hula Nalani Kanakaole and Huihui Kanahele-Mossman, the halau is widely known and celebrated for its ‘aiha‘a style of hula (dance) and ‘oli (chant). The ‘aiha‘a is a low-postured, vigorous, bombastic style of hula that springs from the eruptive volcano personas of Pele and Hi‘iaka, characteristic of Hawai‘i Island’s creative forces.
There also was a performance honoring ‘Aha Punana Leo and ‘Olelo Hawai‘i.
‘Aha Punana Leo — the nonprofit educational organization that took a lead role in the revitalization of ‘Olelo Hawai‘i, the Hawaiian language through Hawaiian immersion education — celebrated its 40th year in existence in 2003.
When ‘Aha Punana Leo was founded in January 1983 by a group of Hawaiian educators, fluency in the Hawaiian language was largely limited to those born before 1920 and the 200 or so people living on the Island of Ni‘ihau.
Now, largely through efforts spearheaded by ‘Aha Punana Leo, there are several thousand speakers of Hawai‘i’s native language, and a complete preschool through doctoral-level system of education in the state of Hawai‘i is taught entirely through Hawaiian.
One of the educators who founded ‘Aha Punana Leo, Larry Kimura, professor of Hawaiian language and studies at the University of Hawaii at Hilo, is also being honored Saturday as grand marshal of the festival’s Royal Parade.
Always a crowd-pleaser is the haka, a traditional dance of Aotearoa — also known as New Zealand. The performers on Wednesday were Awhina-i-te-Kaupapa, a group of current and former students of Te Wharekura o Rakaumanga, a Maori school based in Huntly, a small town on New Zealand’s North Island. It is a return for Awhina, who last performed at Ho‘ike in 2019.
The Ho‘ike, which had a $5 admission last year, went back to its original free-of-charge, first-come, first-served seating, with voluntary donations accepted for Maui relief efforts. The Valley Isle is still in the early stages of recovery from the devastating wildfires last August that killed at least 100 people and caused an estimated $5.5 billion in property damage.
A hearty Hilo welcome was given to a group of 15 students, all girls, from the advanced hula classes at Lahainaluna High School. The young wahine from Maui performed on hula’s biggest stage on Wednesday with just a few days of notice, although most performers, including those at Ho‘ike, prepare for months, even perhaps a year.
Lahaina was ground zero for the destructive fires, and kumu hula Eva Palakiko told the Tribune-Herald that about 90 percent of her students either lost their homes or lost access to the homes because of the fires.
The Papa Hula O Lahainaluna haumana, who are being hosted by the YMCA of Hilo, also will be on hand tonight, sitting in the halau section as spectators, as 13 young women vie to become Miss Aloha Hula, the most prestigious title a solo hula dancer can earn.
Only one of the those dancers will represent a Big Island halau — Chianti “Kiki” Kamailekaluhea Motta of Halau Ka Lehua Pua Kamaehu, under the direction of na kumu hula Kasie Puahala Kaleohano and Brandi Nohelani Barrett.
The first of three nights of competition in the “Super Bowl of Hula” was scheduled to take place on Thursday evening with the entrance of the Royal Court at the Edith Kanaka‘ole Multi-Purpose Stadium.
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Reporter John Burnett can be reached at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
