The Shattered Vase

Princess Kaʻiulani

This past Saturday evening I attended the hula drama put on by Kumu Hula Paul Neves. He is the Kumu for Hālau Haʻa Kea o Kinohi. He has students that dance in the hālau from Hilo, Washington and San Francisco.

In case you haven't been to something like this before, a 'hula drama' is a play that incorporates hula dances and a storyline. This type of play may or may not incorporate Hawaiian instruments as the percussion, contemporary songs, hula kahiko (traditional hula) and ʻauana (modern hula). Sometimes contemporary songs can be used as the music in which the hula is danced to. This can be a beautiful thing. I like to see these types of hula because it gives the audience an understanding into what it may have been like to witness a hula in the olden days. Nowadays, not everyone speaks ʻōlelo (the Hawaiian language) so unless you study hula you miss all of the richness that the lyrics bring through the dancer. When a Kumu choreographs a modern hula to a modern song, it can give us an experience of what it would be like to understand the Hawaiian Language as someone dances hula.

Knowing the Hawaiian language gives a deeper understanding into what the hula is about. The dancer becomes what it is they are dancing about. For instance, as with the play, the person who played Kaʻiulani had to "become" her. Her persona, aura, feelings and expressions come out through her performance and her hula. Just as actors embrace their roles in theatre, a hula dancer embodies the quality, character or traits they are dancing about. In addition to fully expressing the story, a hula dancer must know the general meaning of the dance as well as the "hidden" meaning of the dance. Hula chants and dances are very poetic. There are metaphors weaved throughout them. For example, pua, meaning flower, may also refer to a child or chief. There is an ʻōlelo noʻeau (wise saying) that states, "he lei poina ʻole ke keiki" which means "a child is a lei you never forget." I know you can picture the arms of a precious child clasped around a loved ones neck.

Kumu Paul Neves

In the Shattered Vase, Kumu Paul Neves was able to talk story at the beginning and end of the performance. It was beautiful because the audience was able to learn a little about his background, him growing up in California, and his move to the islands. This play was done to honor the statement that Queen Liliʻuokalani had given when the state was annexed, and also to honor the efforts of Kaʻiulani in demanding justice for the Hawaiian people.

This hula drama stuck to the traditional style of dance. I liked this play in particular because I got to learn something! Learning is one of my favorite things so I really liked that they included genealogy, moʻolelo,  hula, facts and Kaʻiulani's efforts. It was wonderful to see a play that was meant to inform the audience not just entertain.

Queen Liliʻuokalani

My favorite part of the whole play was when Queen Liliʻuokalani, Kaʻiulani's aunt, presented Ke Aloha o Ka Haku, also known as the Queen's Prayer. That was the time I began to cry! It was very moving and so relevant to today! She was so smart and I believe that that song can truly heal people. I was deeply moved by it. It is a song that sings about forgiveness. Queen Liliʻuokalani was imprisoned in her own home because she protested the Republic of Hawaiʻi (even though it sounds like it was a Hawaiian government, it wasn't- it was put in place by foreigners who wanted control over how business was run so they could make a bigger profit). When she was imprisoned in her palace, one of the songs she wrote spoke of forgiving all of the wrongs they have been done. (Did you know you can read her entire autobiography online? You can read it here).

I would like to leave this song with you now. Please use the song in your life to bring peace and love and to understand forgiveness. I know you will like it:

                                  Ke Aloha o ka Haku

ʻO kou aloha nō Aia i ka lani A ʻo Kou ʻoia ʻiʻo He hemolelo hoʻi     Koʻu noho mihi ʻana A paʻahao ʻia ʻO ʻoe kuʻu lama Kou nani koʻu koʻo     Mai nānā ʻinoʻino Nā hewa o kānaka Akā e huikala A maʻemaʻe nō     No laila e ka Haku Ma lalo o kou ʻēheu Kō mākou maluhia A mau loa aku nō     ʻĀmene

Your loving mercy Is as high as Heaven And your truth So perfect     I live in sorrow Imprisoned You are my light Your glory, my support     Behold not with malevolence The sins of man But forgive And cleanse     And so, o Lord Protect us beneath your wings And let peace be our portion Now and forever more     Amen