Academy Of Hawaiian Arts (Auana Wahine), Merrie Monarch 2007

[laakealiilenananea]

This is from one kumu to another...I too have been looked down upon because of my preference of hula auana I do. In my opinion I think Mark Keli'i Ho'omalu is awesome. His (what others would call) untraditional kahiko shows how creative he is. From his chanting to his kahiko to his singing and dancing of au'ana...to me his choreograph and arrangements is one of a kind. It is his interpretation and that in it is awesome....just awesome!!!! Go get 'em Mark...You are awesome and talented. Aloha!!!

[cnanidawg]

you think this is good.....Its going down in the bay on October 2nd, the men of the Academy of Hawaiian Arts are battling center stage with 4 other halau at kahulahou, an all kane competition!(San Mateo,Ca) i cant wait! you should check it out at the kahulahou website. dont forget to check out the forum to sees whos talking smack!

[kekoaokekoolau]

THE ONLY REASON MARK HAS NEVER WON IS BECAUSE THE JUDGES AND FESTIVAL GOT THEIR HEADS TOO FAR UP THEIR ASSES!! THEY WONT LET THE TITLE LEAVE THE STATE IF MARK WAS BASED IN HAWAII HE WOULDA TOOK FIRST PLACE IN ALMOST EVERY YEAR HE ENTERED!!

AND FYI MAHUS WERE NOT VIP AND TIL THIS DAY ARE STILL FROWNED UPON IN SOCIETY BECAUSE THEIR DIFFERENT..BUT SOCIETY NEEDS TO WAKE THE FUCK UP AND REALIZE THAT THEIR PEOPLE JUS LIKE U AND ME THEY JUS HAVE A DIFFERENT OPINION ON THE GENDER THE PREFER TO LOVE!!

[jeni323]

adorable :) great job as always from AHA

[smthbear808]

PAU / STOP it with all the hate talk about 'mahu"! Shame on you folks who don't do youre research! Why all this hatred talk! Why become so "ho'ohaole"!? Youre no better than those misikona of old who had no tolerance of the hula period! Many of you descend from people who today their mannerisms would make them mahu! Western view of masculinity is western! Akua said LOVE EVERYONE that includes the mahu/butchilani/ac-dc what have you. ESPECIALLY you folks who go NEW HOPE.. Pau already!!!

[smthbear808]

PAU ! STOP IT WITH ALL THIS HATE TALK ABOUT MAHU/BUTCHIES !!!

To hate these people is like being "ho'ohaole". Many of you descend from people who in this day's culture would be considered "mahu". STOP IT!

Akua said LOVE EVERYONE and us people need to remember the lord said everyone. Stop judging youre own with a western eye..shame on you! God aloha's everyone and so should you...auwe hyopocrites...enough already!!!

[PULUSIBAGOOMBA]

All of these "so-called" Authentic Halau such as Eselu's, Chinky's, Dalery etc who are complaining about AOHA saying that "It's not according to tradition!" need to look in mirror! Is it "tradition" to have all of these MAHU'S in the Halau. TRADITIONALLY!, they would have been beaten to a bloody mess in the days of ancient Hawai'i. The Ali'i back then would have taken their heads off for such an insult! But oh no! not today. Now if your a Kumu and MAHU!! you're considered sacred! Get a life!

[teriimataha]

ignorant,!!!

Mahus were VIP in the ancient time, they were respected loved by every one. Please read History of Polynesian Islands before saying stupidities :(((

[Haliaka]

I never heard of Mahu's or hawaiian queers being V.I.P's. Where did you get this info' from?

[MANGoMILANo]

'O ka mea nui ke ola o ka hula. Ina aia ka hoihoi i na kanaka like 'ole, maika'i loa no ka mea e ulu ana na mea a me ka 'ike Hawai'i. Mahalo nui 'ia ka hana a na halau a pau me na kanaka a pau. Mahalo kakou i na haumana e ho'omau nei i ka hula. He mea kuikawa no na kanaka A PAU.

[hula365]

back in the 50's black people could'nt vote, they had no rights so came the civil rights movement. so you mean to tell me by people changing/evolving how things were done to improve things is a dishonor? remember we all currently are doing things that were "never done before" does this mean we are all dishonoring our culture? we all need to continue to be tolerant. continue to learn, & grow!!!!

[TysonAlves]

@PULUSIBAGOOMBA if really didnt know but mark is mahu to. It has nothing to do wit being mahu its if u love the hula .some of the best dancers and falsetto singers are mahus.thsi is coming from  straight guy

[JonahMolina]

@PULUSIBAGOOMBA

actually, try do some research next time brahdah. It wasn't uncommon for male ali`i to have male lovers.

[uncleisaako]

@PULUSIBAGOOMBA Your fantasy sounds more haole than hawaiian. Take a breath.

[ClaireP1891]

I have a rather odd request: I have been trying to contact Kumu Mark for months now with no response. I've tried the halau email, his personal email, and leaving a voice message, but no luck. Please, if you are in contact with Kumu Mark or AHA, could you help me?

Mahalo for your time,

Claire Peckham

[ClaireP1891]

I love this, it makes me giggle :) Was it uncomfortable to sit on those buckets?

[misskanitha]

HELLS yes. we all had bruises on our butts. lol but it was worth it to do something this CrAzY at MM!!

[xasianislanderxx]

i dont understand why you guys only think hawaiians can dance hula. if the asians are HELPING the hawaiian culture stay alive by dancing because they love this dance then why would you bag down on them? anyways, congratulations aha. i always look forward to watching your group every year :D

[Haliaka]

I see alot of great asian hula dancers. However, those asian dancers were taught by hawaiian or local island Kumu's.

[bigmaka92]

Aloha.....

Mahalo Mahalo for sharing the love of Aloha all the way from Oakland,CA. Hula going strong..I love Kumu Mark.....just wished he had a Halau here in Hawaii. I would apart of his group. I just love his way of hula....NEW & CREATIVE....Again all of his hula is just awesome to watch. mahalo again for the love

[derikpoquiz]

hey guys...if you looking for Kumu's Marks performances with a good Audio Match - search for blckSTRM2007 on YouTube. He has 2007 on there...

[teriimataha]

you're right yours have better quality , mahalo nui ;o))

[derikpoquiz]

thanks for posting!

[missxalohaxhula]

thats my cousin Aileens halau... w00t... she's dancing in here...

[77TANN]

Eh, what's up with faamanuu's comment. And can I ask what's up with the "ya'lls in that comment too? When I was growing up on Oahu I neva heard that. So what they neva win. They showed awesome talent and plenty creativity. GREAT JOB AHA and I give Kumu Hula Mark plenty praise and blessings.

[bigmaka92]

mahalo for sharing this video with the world. I just love mark kealiihoomalu for the love of the hula & how he can come out with creativity. mahalo

[waveblink]

LOng live the white bucket haha

[nbelle4]

what's the title of the music? I like it so muuccchh...:)

[misskanitha]

The Ka'i and ho'i are a combo of "He Ono" and "Wahine Poupou", and the mele is an original composition my Kumu Mark called "E ka makoi".

[code3cowboy]

is E ka makoi recorded anywhere like cd or something?

[xkathys]

Whoooa ! I like it (; ahaaaha, my group could NEVVVER in a fudgeillion years be as good & sycronized as the Academy of Hawaiian Arts .

& ohmygoodness faamanuu, you're just jeaaaalous , like you could do HALF as good .

[rikstah]

WOW that was entertaining, unexpected, and awesome!!!! I'm supposing that thanks to Academy of Hawaiian Arts, there's going to be a new category added to next years competition, "Hula and Props" because this was fabulous and really brought more to story telling!!! Thanks

[Hawn808C]

P.S: Screw the haters, have they worked there asses off to make it onto that stage? exactly

[Hawn808C]

Ey I dance for Sonny Ching, one of the competing top Halaus. I like your auana, It was a cute story and your dance made me laugh and smile. me coming from Sacramento but now living on oahu for mah 3rd year. I watch that halau and I see nothing but Happy hula dancers, and thats all there needs to be on that stage. nuff sed

[teriimataha]

Excellent! Drama and very fun, telling the true life in the islands. Just one criticism was that they don't show enough hula gesture (due of items). Was not it what calling auana? unfortunately they weren't been placed.

[waveblink]

well isnt hula the a story told by your movements and gestures of ones body

[teriimataha]

i mean, i don't see any "uwehe" for example.

[waveblink]

do you really need an uwehe for it to be hula there dancing about fishing what would an uwehe express in a song about fishing

[teriimataha]

may be a jump when the wave submerges the place where you sat or when you don't want to release a very big fish. Uwehe can expresses many others aspect of fishing. You withdraw the music and change the costume, that becomes a dance like another western or japeneese musical film. Hula steps remind anyone the hawaiian heritage.

[waveblink]

is not fishing part of hawaiian heritage many people have come up to me tellin me how much this dance reminded them of there aunties of their own heritage

[teriimataha]

Hula steps like Uwehe remind the hawaiian heritage. I never said that fishing was. This festival is a description of hawaiian current or past life with Hawaiian steps.

[waveblink]

as many say its in the eye of the beholder

[heyitskainoa]

Hawaiians didn't use poles to go fishing. This isn't hula. Teriimataha is right. This is crap. It's not hula.

[faamanuu]

anyways the reason why ya'll didnt win its because the song n motion its shit........what kind of hula dancing is this only asians ......well ya'll lost n also too if ya'll really read the rule books ya'll wouldntt have brought a white bucket on stage ......lilke i said before ya'll is shit

[misskanitha]

I'm glad you enjoy using up all you're time to think about us, Thank You! And sorry if we offended you, oh mighty Merrie Monarch expert.

and maybe if you opened you're eyes enough, you'd realize that we paid really close attention to the rule book... and figured out exactly how to piss off people like you. =]

[nkokami]

Kala ia (excuse) faamanuu, he or she just doesn't know better. The comments are very negative and very ignorant. I could see if they were contructive criticism but it was not even that at the least. faamanuu might need to do a little listening and learning and mroe so comprehending that of the Hawaiian culture and not soo much of what he/she "THINKS" the rule book might say.

[naniloa88]

your attitude toward that fool cracks me up!

I love it &I totally agree.

I'm now in Seattle &people up here don't understand hula so it's hard to broaden their little minds.

I've been dancing since I was 5 and this was bold creativity.

maika'i loa!

[waveblink]

excuse but um where in the rule book does it prohibit white buckets and how can you critizie something like this do you dance hula do you know how much work goes into something like this, and just to let you know not everyone in this is asian there are mixture of asians hawaiians filipinos and many others, so check your facts first before you make such harsh critism

[xasianislanderxx]

filipinos are asian.

[mauiOO]

If Hula was never written down or recorded hundreds of years ago who's to say what is being called traditional today is even truly traditional? Why because your Kumu said so? Simple as this-if you dont like what you see then dont watch! I hope that we as Human Beings continue to LEARN and GROW to be tolerant and be accepting regardless of differences. Think outside the box dont lock yourselves in it IMUA.

[nkokami]

I dont know who you are, who do you think you are! But if you are Hawaiian in any way your kupuna and more so kumu hula should be shame of your comment. That was not pono what so ever to call what they do "SHIT." Hilahila wasu i kau 'olelo ho'okano!!

[misskanitha]

Technically, our ka'i and ho'i had kaholo and holo aupuni in them, and we threw a kawelu or two in the dance...so we diiiid dance. =]

[hulanani50]

different and fun!

[tinasattler1]

it looks and souds good to me

[Haynkekai00]

Why is that all of the AOHA is all messed up???...UGH!!!

[magdalom]

do they won anything ?

[waveblink]

no they didnt when at all not even in kahiko, but of well are hula bruddahs took fourth