Merrie Monarch Festival
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Merrie Monarch Festival
The Merrie Monarch Festival is a week-long cultural festival that takes place annually in Hilo, Hawaii during the week after Easter. It honors King David Kalākaua, who was called the "Merrie Monarch" for his patronage of the arts and is credited with restoring many Hawaiian cultural traditions during his reign, including the hula. Many '' hālau hula'' (schools), including some from the U.S. mainland and some international performers, attend the festival each year to participate in exhibitions and competitions. The festival has received worldwide attention and is considered the most prestigious of all hula contests. Merrie Monarch week begins Easter Sunday every year. The competitive hula events end the week, and occur on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday; they are televised and live-streamed online by KHII-TV (formerly KFVE/K5). The 2020 Merrie Monarch festival was cancelled due to coronavirus pandemic concerns. The 2021 competition was held June 24–26, without a live aud ...
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Hoʻolulu Park
Hoolulu Park (officially the Hoolulu Park Complex; sometimes shortened to Hoolulu Complex) is a park and recreation center operated by the County of Hawaii in Hilo, Hawaii, east of the Wailoa River State Recreation Area and downtown Hilo, and west of Hilo International Airport. The venues are named for prominent figures from the Hilo area, including Hilo High School basketball coach Ung Soy "Beans" Afook, boxer and sports promoter Richard "Pablo" Chinen, coach and complex supervisor Aunty Sally Kaleohano, swim coach Charles "Sparky" Kawamoto, youth sports organizer Walter Victor, and sports booster Dr. Francis F.C. Wong. Hoolulu Park also is the site of the Edith Kanakaole Multi-Purpose Stadium, which hosts nationally prominent events, including the Hilo Orchid Show and the Merrie Monarch Festival. History Early Hawaii County recreation facilities included the Hilo Armory (completed in 1931) and Cow Palace (officially, the Amfac warehouse), both of which were in downtown Hilo. ...
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Hawaii County
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state geographically located within the tropics. Hawaii comprises nearly the entire Hawaiian archipelago, 137 volcanic islands spanning that are physiographically and ethnologically part of the Polynesian subregion of Oceania. The state's ocean coastline is consequently the fourth-longest in the U.S., at about . The eight main islands, from northwest to southeast, are Niihau, Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Lānai, Kahoolawe, Maui, and Hawaii—the last of these, after which the state is named, is often called the "Big Island" or "Hawaii Island" to avoid confusion with the state or archipelago. The uninhabited Northwestern Hawaiian Islands make up most of the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, the United States' largest protected are ...
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Nāpua Greig
Jaye Nāpua Greig-Nakasone (born March 4, 1974), known professionally as Nāpua Greig, is a Hawaiian musician, vocalist, songwriter, record producer, '' kumu hula'' (hula teacher), and educator from Maui, Hawaii. Known primarily for her contributions as kumu hula of Hālau Nā Lei Kaumaka O Uka, she arranges traditional Hawaiian music as well, performing and recording with instruments such as ukulele, ipu, and other traditional Hawaiian hula implements. She has released four solo albums, each earning a Nā Hōkū Hanohano Award. In 2014, Greig voiced the character "Lele" in the Pixar animated short film ''Lava'', alongside fellow musician, Kuana Torres Kahele, who voiced "Uku." It hit #1 on the ''Billboard'' World Digital Song Sales chart in July 2015. In 2015, Greig ran unsuccessfully for the upcountry Maui County Council seat representing Pukalani, Kula, and Ulupalakua. Hālau After successfully completing the ʻūniki process from her kumu hula, Greig launched her own hu ...
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Hālau
A hālau is Hawaiian word meaning a school, academy, or group. Literally, the word means "a branch from which many leaves grow." Today a hālau usually describes a hula school ( hālau hula). The teacher at the hālau is the kumu hula, where kumu means source of knowledge, or literally just teacher. Often you will find that there is a hierarchy in hula schools - starting with the kumu (teacher), alaka'i (leader), kokua (helpers), and then the 'olapa (dancers) or haumana (students). The word was also used for the long open-air houses, often constructed at the shores, where the instruction took place. An example has been reconstructed at the Kaloko-Honokōhau National Historical Park. A common Hawaiian adage An adage (; Latin: adagium) is a memorable and usually philosophical aphorism that communicates an important truth derived from experience, custom, or both, and that many people consider true and credible because of its longeval tradition, i.e. ... is " Aohe pau ka ik ...
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Kumu Hula
Hula () is a Hawaiian dance form accompanied by chant (oli) or song (mele). It was developed in the Hawaiian Islands by the Native Hawaiians who originally settled there. The hula dramatizes or portrays the words of the oli or mele in a visual dance form. There are many sub-styles of hula, with the main two categories being Hula ʻAuana and Hula Kahiko. Ancient hula, as performed before Western encounters with Hawaii, is called ''kahiko''. It is accompanied by chant and traditional instruments. Hula, as it evolved under Western influence in the 19th and 20th centuries, is called ''auana'' (a word that means "to wander" or "drift"). It is accompanied by song and Western-influenced musical instruments such as the guitar, the ukulele, and the double bass. Terminology for two main additional categories is beginning to enter the hula lexicon: "Monarchy" includes any hula which were composed and choreographed during the 19th century. During that time the influx of Western culture c ...
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Hula0082200
Hula () is a Hawaiian dance form accompanied by chant (oli) or song ( mele). It was developed in the Hawaiian Islands by the Native Hawaiians who originally settled there. The hula dramatizes or portrays the words of the oli or mele in a visual dance form. There are many sub-styles of hula, with the main two categories being Hula ʻAuana and Hula Kahiko. Ancient hula, as performed before Western encounters with Hawaii, is called ''kahiko''. It is accompanied by chant and traditional instruments. Hula, as it evolved under Western influence in the 19th and 20th centuries, is called ''auana'' (a word that means "to wander" or "drift"). It is accompanied by song and Western-influenced musical instruments such as the guitar, the ukulele, and the double bass. Terminology for two main additional categories is beginning to enter the hula lexicon: "Monarchy" includes any hula which were composed and choreographed during the 19th century. During that time the influx of Western cultu ...
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Aloha Dalire
Fabianne Pomaialoha Wong Dalire, known professionally as Aloha Dalire, (June 22, 1950 – August 6, 2014) was an American Hawaiian kumu hula, or master hula teacher. She won the first Miss Aloha Hula as Aloha Wong, in 1971, the same year that the Merrie Monarch Festival was established. The Miss Aloha Hula title is hula's top solo wahine (women's) honor. Dalire Wong was born on June 22, 1950, in Honolulu and raised in Kaneohe, Hawaii. She began studying hula dancing when she was just three years old under kumu hula master, George Na'ope. Her mother, Mary Keolalaulani McCabe Wong, founded Keolalaulani Halau 'Olapa O Laka, a hula school, in 1963. Aloha Dalire would later become the director of her mother's halau. Dalire won the first Miss Hula title, later known as Miss Aloha Hula, in 1971 under her maiden name, Aloha Wong. She pursued a career as a hula teacher, ultimately becoming a kumu hula, or hula master. She remained deeply involved with the Merrie Monarch Festival. She regu ...
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West Hawaii Today
''West Hawaii Today'' is a Kailua-Kona, Hawai'i based daily newspaper. It is owned and published by Oahu Publications Inc, a subsidiary of Black Press. History ''West Hawaii Today'' began in 1962 as a special weekly edition of ''Hilo Tribune-Herald''. Known as the ''Kona Tribune-Herald'' it continued in 1964 as a weekly. From late 1964 until 1968, the paper published under the title ''Kona Weekly Tribune-Herald''. It was started by Glenn and Sally Maitland ''West Hawaii Today'' began publishing under its present title on July 31, 1968. In 2014, the ''Hawaii Tribune-Herald ''Hawaii Tribune-Herald'' is a daily newspaper based in Hilo, Hawaii. It is owned and published by Oahu Publications Inc., a subsidiary of Black Press. History The ''Hilo Tribune'' began publication on November 23, 1895, and changed its name to ...'' and ''West Hawaii Today'' were sold by Stephens Media, LLC to Oahu Publications Inc. Subsidiary publications * North Hawaii News Waimea, HI (Weekly, T ...
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Hula0080200
Hula () is a Hawaiian dance form accompanied by chant (oli) or song ( mele). It was developed in the Hawaiian Islands by the Native Hawaiians who originally settled there. The hula dramatizes or portrays the words of the oli or mele in a visual dance form. There are many sub-styles of hula, with the main two categories being Hula ʻAuana and Hula Kahiko. Ancient hula, as performed before Western encounters with Hawaii, is called ''kahiko''. It is accompanied by chant and traditional instruments. Hula, as it evolved under Western influence in the 19th and 20th centuries, is called ''auana'' (a word that means "to wander" or "drift"). It is accompanied by song and Western-influenced musical instruments such as the guitar, the ukulele, and the double bass. Terminology for two main additional categories is beginning to enter the hula lexicon: "Monarchy" includes any hula which were composed and choreographed during the 19th century. During that time the influx of Western cultu ...
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State Of Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state geographically located within the tropics. Hawaii comprises nearly the entire Hawaiian archipelago, 137 volcanic islands spanning that are physiographically and ethnologically part of the Polynesian subregion of Oceania. The state's ocean coastline is consequently the fourth-longest in the U.S., at about . The eight main islands, from northwest to southeast, are Niihau, Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Lānai, Kahoolawe, Maui, and Hawaii—the last of these, after which the state is named, is often called the "Big Island" or "Hawaii Island" to avoid confusion with the state or archipelago. The uninhabited Northwestern Hawaiian Islands make up most of the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, the United States' largest protected are ...
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Dottie Thompson
Dorothy Mae Elizabeth Soares Thompson (May 16, 1921 – March 19, 2010), widely known as Auntie Dottie, was an American festival organizer, who is credited with co-founding and developing the Merrie Monarch Festival. The Merrie Monarch Festival, which is held in Hilo, is Hawaii's premier hula event. It was developed by Thompson and hula dancer, George Naope. Dorothy Mae Elizabeth Soares was born on May 16, 1921, the youngest of five children. As a sophomore in 1937 she was named best female athlete of Hilo High School. She graduated from President William McKinley High School in Honolulu in 1939. She had four children with her husband Ronald Saiki. Her second husband was George Thompson. Thompson served as the Merrie Monarch's executive director since 1968 with Naope. She remained the festival's head until her death in 2010. Thompson initially had to push hard for funds and media coverage during the festival's early years. Throughout her tenure as director of the festival, Tho ...
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