(group chanting in Hawaiian)
(singer chanting in Hawaiian)
- Ready, and one, and two.
Push back, two, three.
Hela left and right. Kawelu left, two, three.
My name is Akiko Colton.
I am Kumu Hula of this halau,
Halau Hula o Na Pua o Hawaii Nei.
One, two, three.
Turning kaholo, left.
(bright music)
- [Narrator] Akiko Colton came to Hawaii from Japan
for college.
While working at the Polynesian Cultural Center,
she fell in love with the artistry of hula
and the native Hawaiian culture.
(bright music)
She then made her way to Eugene, Oregon
where she continues the long, beautiful,
and sometimes challenging history of the art of hula
as kumu or teacher.
- [Akiko] Pulamahia.
(singer singing in Hawaiian)
- [Akiko] To your heart, pu'u.
(singer singing in Hawaiian)
- [Akiko] First I fell in love with is music,
and the motions, the hand motions.
And as I study more and I like the stories
actually behind the songs
and all the hard work we have to put
to create something good together with hula sisters
and the ohana.
(lively music)
Halau Hula o Na Pua o Hawaii Nei
means Hula School of Flowers of Hawaii.
So we consider each of us a flower from Hawaii
and hopefully all learn to be beautiful
as we learned how to hula. One, two, three, tap.
Ready?
(singers singing in Hawaiian) Shake.
(singer singing in Hawaiian) (rattles rattling)
(singer singing in Hawaiian) (rattles rattling continues)
- Yes.
Any new dancers coming to halau,
their image is hula is this.
(gentle music)
So I'll make sure they pull elbow out,
make sure their arm go to the right place,
and I think that's a really big change
from their mind image of hula to actual hula.
(mystic music)
- [Narrator] Hula was a celebrated art form
in ancient Hawaii.
Then in 1830, Queen Kaʻahumanu
who had converted to Christianity,
banned the cultural performance.
However, in 1886, King David Kalakaua brought hula back,
saying that hula is the language of the heart,
and therefore the heartbeat of the Hawaiian people.
- And now we celebrate his effort to bring hula
in April, the Merrie Monarch Festival.
- [Announcer] From He'eia, Kane'ohe, O'ahu,
under the direction of Kumu Hula Aloha Dalire.
- Hula carries the legend and history,
all the things that our ancestor passed down to us.
We need to take those down to the next generations.
(ipu heke thumping)
Kaholo.
(ipu heke thumping)
In hula kahiko, we say ancient hula.
We use ipu heke or hula pahu, the pahu drum for the beat.
(singer chanting in Hawaiian)
- [Akiko] It's a chant.
Usually the chant is for our king and queen, chief, gods,
or historic places.
And costume not too fancy.
Make sure the costume match with the era of the chant
it came from.
(group speaking in Hawaiian)
(ipu heke thumps) (audience clapping)
- Hula 'auana, on the other hand, is a modern hula.
You hear ukulele, guitar, piano.
(lively music)
(singer singing in Hawaiian)
♪ Grass shack, do the hula ♪
- [Akiko] And the costume become variety
of colors and fabrics.
♪ Picking flowers get them all the time ♪
- I start with 'auana.
Especially beginner level class, I start with 'auana.
I think it's easier to love hula.
Awesome.
From 'auana,
because of the music and somewhat easier motion.
Okay, with the palm tree.
Sway, gentle sway.
(singer singing in Hawaiian)
- [Akiko] Nice, akalewa.
(singer singing in Hawaiian)
- [Akiko] Ready? We go back to kaholo.
Ready and step together, step.
- [Student 1] My connection to Hawaii
is I was born and raised there.
So my husband's Hawaiian line goes way, way back.
So just keeping that within the family
and then knowing their culture (sticks clack)
and they have a piece of it, at least.
(Akiko speaking in Hawaiian)
(kids speaking in Hawaiian)
(Akiko speaking in Hawaiian)
(kids speaking in Hawaiian)
(Akiko speaking in Hawaiian)
(kids speaking in Hawaiian)
(upbeat music)
- Okay, kaholo, one level.
(singer singing in Hawaiian)
But upper level, I try to do at least one kahiko a year
so they can learn history
or story of those legendary beings.
(Akiko speaking in Hawaiian)
Kawelu, kalakaua regular, one level. One level.
Whoo.
So at the halau, when we practice,
yes, storytelling is really important
to make sure the motion go to the right place.
Easy to change the story with just the one hand motions.
Kaholo right, going back, and bring your hands in.
This way first.
Bring to me then palms down.
- [Student 2] Yeah, and I think she's really good
about explaining things
and she has a lot of patience- - One, two, three.
- [Student 2] to make sure that everyone is at the same,
like, they all understand it
and then she'll move on to the next verse.
- [Akiko] And left.
And left foot, and left.
Right, left, right.
Drop.
(singer singing in Hawaiian)
And left.
Left foot.
- [Student 3] I like the duck walk roll,
even though sometimes it gives me carpet burn on my elbows.
But it's fun.
It sometimes hurts after a while,
but it's also hilarious to watch your teammates do it.
(singer vocalizing)
- This is our annual ho'ike show
we do every June after school gets out
and we put almost all the songs we learn in the year.
(speaker speaks in foreign language)
(lively music)
(rattles rattling) (singer singing in Hawaiian)
(groups chants indistinctly)
(singer singing in Hawaiian) (rattles rattling)
- [Akiko] And this year, I had 48 dancers on the stage.
I used to have close to 100 before COVID.
It was very nice turnout.
(singer vocalizing)
(sticks clacking)
(singer singing in Hawaiian)
(sticks clacking)
♪ One fond embrace ♪
♪ Aloha ♪
- [Akiko] Hula tells us stories
and, of course, music and chant.
With those two together,
we can keep the Hawaiian culture and history alive.
♪ We meet again ♪
- And now it's part of my life,
so I cannot just take out.
It's just my blood need hula.
- [Group] Aloha.
(audience cheering) (audience clapping)
(no audio)