Kuhi no ka lima, hele no ka maka, or “Where the hands move, there let the eyes follow,” is a rule of hula. It was a scene not to be missed Thursday night at the Kaua‘i Beach Resort near Hanama‘ulu
Kuhi no ka lima, hele no ka maka, or “Where the hands move, there let the eyes follow,” is a rule of hula.
It was a scene not to be missed Thursday night at the Kaua‘i Beach Resort near Hanama‘ulu as more than 200 eyes followed the hands of the dancers of six halau, or hula schools, as they performed in five categories as part of the weeklong Kaua‘i Mokihana Festival.
Opening its 23rd year with services in Hawaiian and English at Kapa‘a First Hawaiian Church, the Kaua‘i Mokihana Festival, a project of the Malie Foundation, was a way for viewers to perpetuate Hawaiian culture in a somewhat-contemporary setting.
This year’s festival was dedicated to the Year of ‘Olelo Hawai’i (the Hawaiian language) and encouraged new compositions of traditional oli, or chants, by rewarding bonus points to those halau who performed oli younger than 10 and 3 years old.
The event brought in songwriters and hula halau from across the islands, and fans of hula from as far as Denmark.
Two such fans, Brian Miller and Julia Estigoy, of San Francisco, who were vacationing here, were excited to experience the event, saying, quite simply, how they “love hula.”
Gro Pedersen, of Denmark, who also is vacationing here, said she was equally stoked, noting she was looking for similarities to her practice of classical Indian dance.
Various haumana (students) of each halau along with audience members enjoyed perusing the craft tables and the ample ono grinds of beef stew on sale in the lobby, along with Native Hawaiian prints provided by Puahina Crafts.
This year’s Kaua‘i Mokihana Festival’s other events included last Friday’s hula ‘auana (contemporary hula) competition at the Kaua‘i Beach Resort, Monday’s Kaua‘i composers’ contest and concert at the Kaua’i Community College Performing Arts Center, and Tuesday’s Under the Palms Concert at the Aston Kaua‘i Beach Resort at Makaiwa, in Waipouli.
The next Kaua‘i Mokihana Festival will be fittingly dedicated to the “Year of Hula.” A date hasn’t been slated yet. See www.maliefoundation.org to learn more.
