Tuesday, February 19
Hula, Chants, and Island Stories
Kahekili Hawaiian
Celebration
LAXSON AUDITORIUM | 7:30 p.m.$23 Premium | $18 Adult
$16 Senior | $14 Student/Child
"The collective memory and experience of generations of Hawaiians." — Hokulani Holt
Celebrate the heritage of Hawaii, as a traditional array of hula dancers, chanters, and musicians come together to portray the story of one of Hawaii's most influential ruling chiefs — Kahekili. Through a hula drama which includes authentic Hawaiian chants, kahiko (traditional hula), dramatic interpretation, live percussion instruments, and storytelling, Kahekili's story will come to life. This performance will also include ceremonies and cultural traditions such as those used for marriages, awa ceremonies, and other traditions rarely seen performed on the stage today.
Hawaiian hula master Hokulani Holt will take the audience back to ancient Hawaii to learn about the life and times of Kahekili, one of Maui's most influential ruling chiefs born in the 1700s. His kingdom included all of the Hawaiian islands except for the Hawaii island. He is said to be the biological father of King Kamehameha the Great and in turn Kahekili's rule provided the gateway for Kamehameha to unify all of the Hawaiian islands.
Audiences will have the chance to learn about the history of hula, different styles, chants, spiritualism, teachings of the master dancers, hula genealogy and cultural practices as they relate to Kahekili's story.
Kahekili's story is not commonly known because his rule took place at a time when Hawaiian culture was rooted in oral traditions before Western contact and the advent of a written language. Interpreting significant stories such as Kahekili's life and times through dance and chant is the traditional way Hawaiian history and culture were maintained. Today, we can only "piece" this information together through research from Hawaiian language newspapers and the work of early Hawaiian historians who wrote in the mid to late 1800s. These source materials helped to create the script as well as the chants and were the basis for the ceremonies and costuming.
Kahekili was made possible by the National Endowment for the Arts American Masterpiece: Dance initiative administered by the New England Foundation of the Arts.
Kahekili is also funded in part by the National Dance Project of New England Foundation for the Arts, with lead funding from Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. Additional funding is provided by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Ford Foundation and JP Morgan Chase.
These activities are also supported, in part, with funds provided by the Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF), and the National Endowment for the Arts.
If you enjoy this performance, you might also enjoy:
Georgian State Dance Company
Ladies of the Slack Key Guitar
Shaolin Warriors
Musafir
Ladysmith Black Mambazo
Peru Negro