Arts Corps is an amazing organization, one that I have had the ultimate blessing to work with as a Master Teaching Artist. I have grown so much as an artist, a leader, a teacher, and a student. I have found so much more of myself by sharing more of myself. And that is when I learned that I am ha'api'i, a Reo Tahiti (Tahitian language) word meaning both "to teach," and "to learn." In my three years with Arts Corps, I have been sharing hula, the dance and spiritual art form of the Hawaiian Islands, with my after-school hula class and Native-Hawaiian ambassador program "Hula Mai 'Oe." However, for the Art & Sol line-up, Arts Corps invited staff and teaching artists to take the stage and share their creative talents outside of the usual scope of the organization. It was an amazing experience to perform alongside the amazing Cheryl Delostrinos, Carlynn Newhouse, Eduardo Mendonça, Amy LP, Shelby Handler and so many others in this incredible and diverse cast.
I chose to share my love of dancing to the drum beats of Ori Tahiti with an Aparima and Ote'a performance. As my finale, in true teaching artist fashion, I asked everyone to join me in dancing fa'arapu, ta'iti, afata, and pa'oti while we all yelled joyously. Mauruuru, Arts Corps, for the work you do in igniting the light in us all. Photo credit to: the amazing multimedia artist and storyteller Amy LP Huraiti Mana was invited by The Outlet Collection Seattle (formally known as the Auburn Super Mall) to participate in its second annual Rock the Lot event. This year's event was dubbed the "Island Edition" with Hula and Ori Tahiti performances, musicians, food, music, games, and more for a packed family-fun event. It was on record the hottest day of 2018 as we performed onstage in the parking-lot-converted-to-fairgrounds.
Early in the morning, our Hawaiian Story Telling time was such a sweet and intimate event - right in the middle of the mall! It was a perfect venue - so creative, so original - and we were joined by the cutest young ones and their 'ohana. We discussed what it meant to be kind, and what was the right thing to do through mo'olelo kahiko (stories of old). Then, we moved outdoors for performances on the main stage alongside Jessie Matsui's Mixxed Fit demo, Arden Fujiwara's 'Ukulele performance, and Sunshine from Polynesia's Hawaiian mele performances. Special Mahalo to the team at The Outlet Collection for creating such an amazing and warm event (no pun intended!). It is not always that Hawai'i events in Washington have such a great turn out from folks in the Polynesian Communities who are able to meet and connect with one another! We met so many amazing leaders in our Ori Tahiti (Tahitian dance) community and were able to talk briefly about our dreams for the future of Ori in the Pacific Northwest. As one of the newest dance groups to the region, Huraiti Mana is so humbled and so blessed to begin contributing to and connecting with this community here in Seattle. During our audience participation section, many friends and family and other groups' dancers joined the stage for laughter and shared love of dance. A big mauruuru roa to Lara Mae and all who planned this amazingly fun event - your care and sincere devotion to Hawaiian and Ori cultures is so important to our communities. Northwest Share in partnership with the Vedic Cultural Center held its first annual Festival of Compassion for Seattle's houseless population, providing free food and a line-up of high-energy performances including Huraiti Mana, Northwest Tap Connection, LQ Lion Dance, and many more. Everyone should have access to events such as these where we share in food, music, and dance, connecting with everyone that makes up our home. As someone who has travelled here from the islands and now calls Seattle home, I hope that this home can be shared - equally - by all. Mahalo nui loa to Northwest Share, Vedic Cultural Center, and Latha Sambamurti for your amazing work in our communities. Mahalo and mauruuru roa!
Highline High School kindly invited Huraiti Mana back again, and this time, to celebrate the amazing achievements of the graduating seniors who are headed off to colleges across the nation in their formal College Day event! I am so proud of the staff that has put on such an important tradition for this school. Similar to Sports Day when many young athletes celebrate the professional sports teams they are joining, College Day is meant to celebrate students' next step toward pursuing their education - a feat just as momentous, daunting, and rewarding.. Shout out to the young student headed to Seattle University (my alma mater) and the two headed to Stanford! E ho'omaika'i nō! Congratulations!
Huraiti Mana was invited to participate in a multi-cultural showcase reflecting the diverse population of students (shout out to my islanders!). I performed "He Hawai'i Au," which is a song expressing the journey to finding and understanding oneself, something I hope that each of these many students come to understand as they embark on their own journeys of self discovery. That though the journey may be difficult, they can always look within and know who they are. I kēia pō eia au me ʻoe Kēia pō ua hoʻi mai au He loa ka helena ma ke ala hele E huli i wahi ma kēia ao Maopopo a ua ʻike hoʻi Ka home i loko o kuʻu puʻuwai Ua hoʻi mai au, ke ʻike nei au ʻAʻole au e ʻauana hou Ke maopopo he Hawaiʻi au Tonight I am here with you Tonight, I have returned Long was my journey on the path To seek a place in this world I now clearly see and understand The home within my heart I returned when I realized this I will not wander again For I understand, I am Hawaiian My sister and I are the only of our Native Hawaiian family to attend a four-year university and earn a Bachelor's degree. For many of the students celebrated at this College Day event, they are the first in their families to attend college. But, we will not be the last. This opportunity not afforded to so many in our family and so many more in our island homes cannot be reserved for so few. Imua e nā pōkiʻi! We are here for you on this journey. We circle back to an entire year of work and dedication culminated in a first anniversary performance of Huraiti Mana at the API Heritage Month Celebration! We were excited to share with our family, friends, and community that we are united in the efforts to perpetuate and celebrate our cultures, our stories, and our spirits. We opened our performance with hula kahiko, a traditional and ancient form of hula, percussion, and chant, honoring our Queen and last reigning monarch of the Hawaiian Kingdom, Ke Ali'i Lili'uokalani. We moved into a hula 'auana number with contemporary musical instruments and melodic tunes with Justin Young's rendition of a hula classic, Ka Manu. And we finished our performance with ori Tahiti or Tahitian dance, including choreography to Moemoea by Sefa. Friends and family in the Seattle Center joined us onstage and rounded out our performance with a fast lesson in Tahitian dance. Our finale always brings smiles and laughs, but for myself, it also brings a joyous empathy and compassion. Joining together in dance is what I strive most for in this life, no matter how briefly. Dance connects us all. Immediately after leaving the stage, we jumped in to a quick interview with API Heritage Month, and our huraiti so kindly, and with so much aloha, shared their spirits. Huraiti Mana is about empowerment, about self awareness and self expression. It is about 'ohana - our family. It is about us all. I am so very grateful to be a part of this growing, evolving, inspiring, loving, and caring 'ohana. During our lei-making workshop that followed the performance, Sam Le of the Northwest Asian Weekly circled to our tables and asked, "why is it important to celebrate your heritage?" "It is important to celebrate our heritage because it breathes life and meaning into our identities and our knowledge of who we are. It is always important to explore the past and see how our heritage is with us today." This past year has been an amazing year filled with learning, compassion, dedication, and inspiration. Ia vai e Huriati Mana! Ei aha roa to oe hiro'a e ia mo'e e to'u nuna'a! May you always have the consciousness of your origin. I will always remember how we became a family, and how we will continue to be so today and furthermore. Mauruuru roa e nā Huraiti no tou aroha. #huraitimana #oriseattle Mahalo to everyone at U.T.O.P.I.A. Seattle - the United Territories of Pacific Islanders Alliance. Huraiti Mana celebrated with this amazing organization at their lū'au celebration: A Journey Through Pasifika. Huraiti Mana represented Hawai'i and Tahiti islands with performances of hula and ori Tahiti or Tahitian dance to end this festive night in Burien, Washington. Mahalo to Taffy and to everyone who poured their hearts and soul into making a powerful evening of visibility and connection. Ia vai e U.T.O.P.I.A. and the entire LGBTQA community of the Pacific Kingdom!
#huraitimana #oriseattle The Le brothers of goPoké kindly invited Huraiti Mana to perform at their first birthday celebration! The day kicked off with raffle prizes, giveaways, and rainbow cake from Cakes of Paradise. Festivities went on from 11:00AM - 808PM (shout out!). Congratulations to the Le borthers and their entire 'ohana for such a successful year. Their family's story is rich and full of triumph. We are all here, supporting the future of our communities, creating new traditions, and furthering our culture and history. Here, in Seattle. But we will always remember Hawai'i as the home of our hearts.
An entire year has gone by, and the International Examiner welcomed Huraiti Mana for its 25th Annual Community Voice Awards and 43rd Anniversary Benefit Dinner on September 21 at the Joyale Restaurant.
From all of us to all of you, we extend a warm aloha and congratulations to all of the awardees! Draped in Huraiti Mana orchid lei, the below were honored for their extensive and genuine support and advocacy for our communities.
Our huraiti (dancers) sincerely enjoyed themselves sharing our song and dance with so many different groups and communities at the Duwamish River Festival on Saturday, August 26. Amigos de Seattle, Seattle Thai Classical Music and Dance, and more were brought together to celebrate the hard work of the Duwamish River Clean-Up Coalition.
Founded in 2001 by efforts of the community, this Seattle-based non-profit organization serves to restore and protect the Duwamish River while perpetuating the values and livelihood of the families and small businesses who live and work in the neighboring areas. With meaningful collaborations and research efforts, the coalition creates culturally-sensitive year-round programming including offering guided river tours, educational forums, habitat-restoration events, youth programs, and festivals such as the annual Duwamish River Festival. To the team at the Duwamish River Clean-Up Coalition, mauruuru roa for extending such a warm and welcoming invitation to Huraiti Mana! We are grateful to learn more about your mission and hope to continue to support in the years to come. Haere mua! We had such a great time performing hula and ori Tahiti or Tahitian in our hometown Chinatown-International District as a part of the Seattle Asian American Film Festival summer series! We met awesome folks at the lei-making station, and we're proud of all the beautiful lei that were made over great conversation, laughs, and new ideas. We hope to see some of our newfound friends at upcoming practices and lei workshops! Special thanks to SAAFF and to InterIM CDA for hosting and supporting such a fun and family-friendly event.
Missed out on the Moana film-screening? Catch the next films every Saturday for the rest of August! Saturday, Aug 5 | Mr. Nice Guy Saturday, Aug. 12 | The Mermaid Saturday, Aug. 19 | Fearless Saturday, Aug. 26 | Big Hero 6 Especially being so close with the CID community, we love to share in community engagement and some old-fashioned family fun. Mahalo nui from Huraiti Mana! |
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