Merrie Monarch Ho‘ike Night more than simple showcase of hula, folk dance

The energy was more than palpable Wednesday night inside the Edith Kanaka‘ole Multi-Purpose Stadium in Hilo on the east side of the Big Island as the 61st annual Merrie Monarch Festival Ho‘ike Night unfolded.

A shoulder-to-shoulder crowd packing the stadium often erupted with thunderous cheers and burst into booming applause throughout the evening as dancers performed and others were honored during the weeklong festival’s popular annual exhibition of hula and folk dance from around the Pacific.

Beating drums, rumbling chants and resounding footsteps reverberated throughout the facility while Hālau O Kekuhi — under the direction of Nālani Kanaka‘ole, daughter of the Hawaiian cultural icon for whom the stadium is named — captivated the audience with several dances.

Smiling was almost a given as the power and excitement of the evening swelled in your chest. The sounds and scenery combined to become one heartbeat.

In that moment, those famous words said by the “Merrie Monarch” himself David Kālakaua — “Hula is the language of the heart and therefore the heartbeat of the Hawaiian people” — came to life 133 years after the Kingdom of Hawai‘i’s last king died.

Ho‘ike Night did more than simply showcase hula and folk dance.

The prequel to the festival’s 3 days of hula competition, which kicks off at 6 p.m. Thursday with the individual Miss Aloha Hula contest, also celebrated Hawaiian culture by honoring 40 years of efforts by ‘Aha Pūnana Leo to revitalize and normalize ‘Ōlelo Hawai‘i (Hawaiian language).

‘Aha Pūnana Leo is a Hawaiian language immersion program aimed at driving and inspiring change to make sure a living Hawaiian language exists in the islands and beyond. It spans 13 different locations throughout the state, including Hilo and Kaua‘i.

Also honored were kūpuna, including Martha Manoanoa Waipa Lum Ho, mother of the late famed kumu hula Johnny Lum Ho, as well as cultural specialists such as Mary Kawena Pukui and linguists like Samuel Elbert who pushed for the language’s survival.

“Generations of students in Hawaiian medium education and standard schools, from preschool through university, benefitted from the efforts of these cultural leaders and native speakers, as well as from the work of teachers and parents who steadfastly encouraged the learning and use of Hawaiian,” said Merrie Monarch Festival President Luana Kawelu in a message printed in this year’s festival program.

Kawelu added that many schools, universities and adult education classes continue to teach Hawaiian.

“When we hear the language being spoken, it brings us pride and identifies us as Hawaiian people,” she said. “May the Hawaiian language continue to thrive for many generations to come.”

Awhina, Ora and Leilani Kihi ended the night with a Maori presentation.

A line formed before 4 p.m., with people waiting to get a seat inside the 4,200-square-foot stadium to watch the exhibition that started 2 hours later. It snaked from the stadium, around Francis Wong Stadium and beyond.

Some sat in lawn chairs, getting off their feet as the line at first advanced at an ‘opihi’s pace. Others just sat on the sidewalk. Most, however, stood.

The line’s progression eventually sped up, so most of those who had been waiting were at least inside the stadium gates by the time the show started. People were still coming in, however, more than 30 minutes after the festivities began.

This year’s Ho‘ike was once again free for the masses. Festival organizers made the decision not to charge admission, instead offering those who attended the option to help recovery efforts in Lāhainā, Maui, which was devastated by a deadly wildfire in August 2023.

Donations were accepted at the door. The funds collected will kōkua (help) the people of the West Maui community, many of whom lost loved ones, homes or both in the blaze.

“That’s really important so that we can share and celebrate our culture, and part of that is aloha,” said 40-year-old Hilo resident Kalani Quiocho, who didn’t know until Wednesday night while waiting in line outside the stadium that donations were being taken to help Maui. “Aloha is, I think, the greatest value of the Hawaiian people, the Hawaiian community. With our brothers and sisters and community that need us on Maui, this is a way that we can celebrate but also recognize that we are in a time of need here at home in Hawai‘i.”

One of the loudest cheers from the audience Wednesday night came when representatives from Pūnana Leo O Lāhainā, one of ‘Aha Pūnana Leo’s locations on the Valley Isle, watched across the stage.

Quiocho, who was attending his fourth Ho‘ike Night, said it was beautiful to be with everyone at the event and think about how together they can contribute to the larger needs and interests of Hawai’i’s communities.

Elizabeth McGann, a 50-year-old Kahuku, O‘ahu, native who has lived in Michigan for the past 25 years, came to her first Ho‘ike Night on Wednesday with several of her family members, including her 24-year-old daughter Julia Rose Franklin who is originally from northern Michigan and has lived in Hilo for the past 5 years.

McGann hadn’t seen her daughter in 2 years.

She echoed Quiocho’s sentiments about the beauty of the Merrie Monarch Festival, which celebrates hula and everything Hawaiian, collecting donations for Maui.

“I think it’s amazing. We need to support Maui,” said McGann while she, Franklin and two other family members, including her 24-year-old niece Keana Kamali‘i who lives in Kona, were waiting in line. “We need to support all of us here in the state of Hawai‘i.”

This year’s Ho‘ike was also Franklin’s first.

She said taking donations to support Maui is a great idea: “It’s much needed, and I love that the community is banding together with that intention. … Fully supported.”

Wednesday night’s Ho‘ike marked Kamali‘i’s third. When she learned about the festival taking donations for Maui, like the other family members with her, she was behind the move 100%.

“Right on!” exclaimed Kamali‘i. “Maui’s going through such a hard time with housing and all that stuff, so donations, definitely, I’ll be making to support our ‘ohana there.”

Four hula hālau from Maui are competing in this year’s hula competition despite the devastation wrought by the Lāhainā wildfire. According to Kawelu, that’s more than the usual two or three Maui groups that participate each year.

The 61st annual Merrie Monarch Festival continues through Saturday.

Group hula kahiko (traditional hula) competition begins at 6 p.m. Friday, with the group hula ‘auana (more modern and less formal than hula kahiko) contest set for 6 p.m. Saturday followed by the announcement of awards.

To find everything you need to know — and more — about this year’s festival, click here.