Hawaiian Hula: Once Banned, Now Embraced
United Church of Christ
Gospel and Culture
Madang Hall, performance stage
Wednesday
06 Nov 2013
13:15 - 13:45
|
United Church of Christ Gospel and Culture Madang Hall, performance stage |
The first missionaries to Hawai`i in the early 1800s banned hula (dance) because they feared that it was too suggestive and sensuous. This ancient art form, through which Hawaiians remembered and passed on their stories and myths, nearly died out until the Hawaiian cultural resurgence in the 1970s. Today, hula, both in ancient and modern forms, is practiced widely throughout the Hawaiian islands as well as the continental U.S.A., Europe and Asia. This side exhibit, through videos and live performance, will demonstrate how hula interprets the "olelo," or the "Word"--the story underlying all humanity.