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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Friday, April 29, 2005

FIVE QUESTIONS
If it's May Day, it must be The Caz

By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Entertainment Writer

Robert and Roland Cazimero and 'ohana continue their May Day tradition with a concert Sunday at the Waikiki Shell. The brothers vow to continue the concerts with old and new guests as long as they're able.

MAY DAY CONCERT

7:30 p.m. Sunday

Waikiki Shell

$15 lawn, $25 reserved; free for kids under 10

(877) 750-4400, ticketmaster.com

Featuring: The Brothers Cazimero, Leina'ala Kalama Heine, several hula halau and guest artists

Also: 7:30 p.m. Monday at Castle Theater, Maui Arts & Cultural Center. $10, $25, $35 general, half price for kids 12 and younger.

(808) 242-7469.

Lei Day is going to be sweeter than pikake for Robert Cazimero, veteran entertainer (with The Brothers Cazimero) and kumu hula (Halau Na Kamalei).

"It's been such a full year so far — and it's not yet half way done," Cazimero said as Sunday's May Day extravaganza at the Waikiki Shell approaches.

You know the drill: Make or buy and wear a lei. Pack your supper, or buy a plate lunch on site. Robert and brother Roland — and their ohana of singers, dancers and special guests — will provide the party ingredients on stage.

It's a ritual that's been embraced by the community for nearly three decades.

We posed five questions to Cazimero before he danced off to a rehearsal the other day:

Following your Merrie Monarch Festival win this year (and the earlier Grammy Award nomination for you and brother Roland), what's life been like so far?

"It's been a learning experience for me. I think, for me, after 30 years in hula, it really didn't matter if we won or not (at the signature hula festival in Hilo). Even when we lost in the past, I thought we 'won,' because I've learned to lose gracefully, especially in the public eye. But actually winning this year is something so dear — I really don't know how to react. I get embarrassed. It was a wonderful victory because we're not 19-year-old bucks anymore.

"It's pretty amazing; in two years, Lei Day will be 30 years, and the real plus is that this year, it's on a Sunday. We get to do a true dress rehearsal over the weekend. And by Sunday, we're gonna be ready."

Hula has been a rich part of your life and an integral element of your music, with roots that go back to Auntie Maiki Aiu Lake. What would she tell you now, if she were still alive today?

"What a job well done. Because when I went into this thing, I didn't know I'd be celebrating 30 years of hula. (Our teaching style) is not exactly like Maiki's style, but I feel so fortunate that others like 'Ala (Leina'ala Kalama Heine, his hula colleague who studied under Auntie Maiki and is a featured dancer in The Caz's shows) could learn from her. She set the bar. She used to tell me, 'Some day, you will be where I am,' and I was frightened then, and I'm frightened now, to know that when you reach a certain age, you see the change and growth. I don't know where the hell the years went, but when I try and think about it, I look at myself, and it's a testament to Maiki that we've achieved."

A teacher never stops teaching or learning; what have you learned during all the years you've been teaching, competing and performing?

"A teacher still learns, day to day. One of the most important things I've learned is that everybody is a teacher; I've learned some of the most important lessons from my students, and some of them don't know this. I've been teaching long enough, gone through generations, and remember things from 30 years ago. Some of the guys in my halau have been with me so long, they are grandparents. As a teacher now, I'm experiencing again what these young guys, myself included, went through years ago."

With Lei Day such a community tradition, you can't really quit, can you? Is this responsibility daunting?

"Roland and I will do May Day till we can't — it's like any tradition. Duty calls. It's true. We have been lashed and chained to our duty, though May Day is gentle lashing, with flower lei. I think the real interesting thing for us is finding guest artists. We want to support the young kids coming up; we're sticking with the younger kids (who are the future), and there's justification of featuring young with the old. It's getting to the point where Roland and I are the old ones, the dinosaurs, the ones facing extinction. But we'll still commit to Lei Day, no matter what."

What's next for you as kumu hula? What goals and dreams remain?

"Here's what's not going to happen: We're not going to Merrie Monarch next year. We'll take off for another five or six years. As kumu, though, I hope to have a celebration, maybe to mark 30 years in hula. You know, do some kind of concert, also marking the 10th anniversary of people like Manu, Veto and Michael (that's Manu Boyd of Halau O Ke 'A'ali'i Ku Makani and Karl Veto Baker and Michael Casupang of Halau I Ka Wekiu), who now lead their own halau. Perhaps this May Day will be a preview of this concert. That's something I really want to do."

Reach Wayne Harada at wharada@honoluluadvertiser.com, 525-8067 or fax 525-8055.