Honolulu halau scores big at festival
| • | Results of 28th King Kamehameha Hula Festival |
By Vicki Viotti
Advertiser Staff Writer
The students of Honolulu kumu hula William "Sonny" Ching danced away with six first-place trophies, the most of any halau competing at the 28th annual King Kamehameha Hula Festival at the Neal Blaisdell Center Arena over the weekend.
Cory Lum • The Honolulu Advertiser
Ching's school, Halau Na Mamo O Pu'uanahulu, outscored the competition Saturday in kahiko (ancient hula) in all categories: men's, women's and combined. The halau also won for their 'auana (contemporary hula) performance in men's, combined and kupuna wahine (senior women's) divisions.
Halau Ka Pa Hula Hawai'i walked away with a tie for the Kahiko Language Award and tied for second in the Male Kahiko competition at the 28th annual King Kamehameha Hula Festival at Neal Blaisdell Center.
Competition this year included halau representing Tokyo and California as well as O'ahu and Maui.
Students of kumu hula and entertainers Keali'i Reichel and Tony Conjugacion led the scoring in chant competition, Reichel's chanters taking first and second and Conjugacion's finishing third.
Malia Craver, Hawaiian cultural specialist with the Queen Lili'uokalani Children's Center and one of the judges at the competition, was honored by the festival for her life's work.
