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Each year, special performances by guest artists highlight
the event with dance and music. This year's guests are: |
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Maori Mo Ake Tonu
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Established in 2000, Maori Mo Ake Tonu or “Maori Forever” aims
to preserve Maori performing arts. This San Francisco Bay Area group
has performed throughout the Western United States. Directed by Tracey
Panek (Nga Puhi Maori tribe), the group performs skillful poi dances,
story-telling action songs, as well as haka. Their performance at the
Tahiti Fete of San Jose features a modern Maori piece. Kia Ora! |
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Halau Ka Liko Pua o Kalaniakea
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Halau Ka Liko Pua O Kalaniakea opened on Mar.4,2003. Under the leadership
of our Kumu Hula Kapualokeokalaniakea Dalire, former Miss Aloha Hula
1991, and eldest daughter of Kumu Hula Aloha Dalire, our halau strives
to perpetuate the hawaiian culture through its songs and dances with
emphasis being placed on the meaning of "Ohana". Although
we take on a new identity as "The new buds or offsprings of the
wide Heavens" we are a blend of new and old faces that are guided
by Ke Ao Hou, meaning new light. |
| However, it is with great respect and responsibility
that we honor her Kupuna and her Kumu by carrying on the traditions,
and passing them down to our future, Na Keiki, The Children. Kumu insists
on building our foundation
based on "Ohana". For it is her belief that if every person
has a solid foundation to call home, whether it be blood related or
not, they can continue to grow into a strong successful being. And
yes, Kumu will be the first to admit that families will bicker and
fight, but the fact remains that nothing can change who you are and
where you come from.
As hula brothers and sisters, Our Kumu and Halau Ka Liko Pua O Kalaniakea
has given us an opprtunity to have that second family. Although we
live miles away, it is our love for the hula, for the language, and
for the islands that keep us close to that place we call home. And
it is this same love in our songs and dances that give us the chance
to share our meaning of Ohana and our traditions with all of you.
Me Ke Aloha Pumehana,
Kumu Hula Kapua Dalire |
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KaUaTuahine
 This
year KaUaTuahine will be perfoming a tribute to the Fernandez family.
The
Ka Ua Tuahine Polynesian Dance Company is an award winning ensemble
made up of individuals from diverse backgrounds dedicated to the
perpetuation of Polynesian performing arts. The company is named
after a light rain that falls in Manoa Valley on the island of
O'ahu.
KaUaTuahine is under the direction of Mahealani Uchiyama a
student of dance since her early childhood, having been raised
within the discipline of the classical hula tradition. She holds
a B.A. in Dance Ethnology and an M.A. in Pacific Islands Studies.
In addition to her academic degrees, she has also studied extensively
with one of Hawaii's premier hula masters, Joseph Kamoha'i Kaha'ulelio.
Since 1984, Uchiyama's dancers have won numerous awards in the most
prestigious Polynesian dance competitions in California and Hawai'i,
including second place honors in the 1987 and 1988 King Kamehameha
Hula Festival in Honolulu, becoming the first Mainland group to rate
so highly in this prestigious Hawaiian competition. In addition to
competing, Uchiyama and her company have highlighted many performances
and events in the Bay Area, including the San Francisco Ethnic Dance
Festival, the San Jose Tahiti Fete, Festival at Lake Merritt, the
Asia-Pacific Dance Festival and the State of the World Forum as
well as numerous events at the University of California at Berkeley
Pheobe Hearst Museum. KaUaTuahine has been invited to travel to Tahiti
in the summer of 2002 to study and perform with one of Tahiti's preeminent
dance ensembles,
Ori Here Maohi Dance Company. |
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