By Pam Houseknecht

Correspondent

The spirit of aloha filled Clubhouse 1 last weekend as the annual Hula Hiehie O Nā Kūpuna festival, or “Elegant Hula of the Elders,” returned to the Village after a two-year pandemic hiatus.

Residents and guests were treated to a day packed with

hula dancing, live music, food and handmade crafts Saturday, Aug. 27.

The theme for this year’s festival was hope, said Aulani Bagalay, the Village Hula Club’s former kumu, or Hawaiian teacher.

“We have all been dealing with the pandemic and all of its sadness. We have all lost loved ones, so we’re taking time to celebrate hope,” Bagalay told the 150-plus people in the audience.

The festival, hosted by the Hula Club, showcased 10 visiting Hawaiian clubs from throughout Southern California, including San Diego, Monterey Park and Cerritos, and one from as far as Clovis in Central California.

Dressed in stunning colorful Hawaiian attire, including exotic flower leis and head, wrist and ankle adornments, dancers performed the graceful kahiko hula – the traditional ancient style of hula that is danced to the music of gourds, drums and chants – as well as the modern and more lively auana hula, often choreographed to guitar and ukulele.

All of the dancers were age 55 or older, said Hula Club President Eileen Lazar

“Our annual festival was started in 2017 because there wasn’t a festival to honor our elders” in the Village, Lazar said.

In Hawaiian culture, kupuna, or grandparents, ancestors and any respected elder, are revered for their wisdom.

“Elders are the holders of history,” Lazar said. “They’re the ones who pass everything down.”

Hula was originally a tool of expression in ancient times for a culture with no written language. The dances and chants helped preserve and pass down the stories, history, culture and traditions of Hawaii.

“Hula is not just a dance for tourists,” Lazar said. “All the songs have meaning. They tell a story, about a lover, a person or place, and the ancient gods like Pele and the island’s rulers.”

And so, the purpose of the hula festival was to “share our love of hula and its culture with our community,” said Maudie Romero, Hula Club vice president.

The Hula Club was formed eight years ago by Village resident Jean Sheik, who was born and raised on Oahu, to explore and honor Hawaiian culture through its hula, history, language and handicrafts.

The club now has around 36 members, with the oldest in their 80s. The club holds workshops and offers periodic excursions to Polynesian festivals. It has been invited to Kona, Hawaii, in December to dance in a hoike, a display of traditional hula, with a Hawaiian halau, or hula school.

Club members make their own dresses and leis, and pass down that skill to others.

Lazar, who was born and raised in West Los Angeles, joined the Hula Club at the urging of a friend.

“I’m learning so much about Hawaiian culture and about the meaning of hula,” she said. “It’s so much more when you learn what you’re dancing about.”

The club also offers a place to socialize and make new friends, hone cognitive skills, get some fun exercise and have an experience that can be uplifting and spiritual, both Lazar and Romero said.

“It’s a great group of ladies. They’re really friendly,” Lazar said. “We get along really well.”

The Hula Club is open to all Village residents – “it’s never too late to learn hula,” Romero said.

The Village recreation department offers instructor-led hula classes Mondays from 1 to 2:30 p.m. and Fridays from 10 to 11:30 a.m. in Clubhouse 5, and Saturdays at 10:30 a.m. in Clubhouse 1. No hula experience is required, just a willingness to learn and a dedication to practice the lessons between classes.

For more information or to join the Hula Club, contact Romero at 909-576-2092 or Lazar at 949-454-8841.