{"id":213508,"date":"2025-04-08T10:46:30","date_gmt":"2025-04-08T20:46:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=213508"},"modified":"2025-04-08T10:46:30","modified_gmt":"2025-04-08T20:46:30","slug":"from-hilo-to-nationals-a-tribute-to-kaimu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2025\/04\/08\/from-hilo-to-nationals-a-tribute-to-kaimu\/","title":{"rendered":"From Hilo to nationals: A tribute to Kaim\u016b"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
\"large
UH<\/abbr> Hilo dance students off the coast of Kaimū<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For the first time, University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> at Hilo will take the national stage at the 2025 American College Dance Association Festival in Washington, D.C.<\/p>\n

Sixteen dance students and two faculty members were selected to perform Haliʻa<\/span> Aloha No Kaimū, a powerful tribute to Hawaiian ancestry and place. Their piece was one of only three chosen from 40 performances at the High-Desert Regional Conference in Wyoming this March. It marked UH<\/abbr> Hilo\u2019s first appearance at a regional\u2014and now, a national\u2014festival.<\/p>\n

Choreographed by dance instructor Kea Kapahua, the work honors her family\u2019s roots in Kaimū and Kalapana. Both were towns in the Puna district of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Island buried by Kīlauea lava flows in 1990.<\/p>\n

“My intent was to capture the feeling of a moment in time of a people group, in a special place,” said Kapahua. “The piece speaks of our ancestors, and that we are not alone.”<\/p>\n

Uplifting Kaimū<\/h2>\n

The piece weaves chant, hula, oli and visuals. It includes audio of Kapahua\u2019s 91-year-old aunty describing life in the now-lost village of Kaimū, along with ocean footage from the area. Dancers used ʻili<\/span> ʻili<\/span> stones and performed traditional songs like Aloha Kaimū and Hōlei.<\/p>\n

Unexpected lessons<\/h2>\n

For the UH<\/abbr> Hilo students, it\u2019s been a transformative journey.<\/p>\n

“Being chosen to perform at Nationals, is such an honor not only for my school, my community, and my home, but for my ʻohana<\/span> who lived in Kalapana, the Kalehuloa\/Sweezey family,” said dancer Loreal Gonzales.<\/p>\n

Student Milia Dela Cruz added, “This past year opened my eyes to a new world of movement and expression. Not only did I get to share my passion for hula in a meaningful way, but I also formed unexpected friendships and pushed beyond my comfort zone.”<\/p>\n

Kapahua says the moment is bigger than the award.<\/p>\n

“Only three dance works from each region were chosen to move on to the National Festival. It is an incredible honor for UH<\/abbr> Hilo to be represented like this.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> at Hilo dance students were chosen to compete at the 2025 American College Dance Association Festival in Washington, D.C.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[78,660,14],"class_list":["post-213508","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-people","tag-dance","tag-student-recognition","tag-uh-hilo","entry","has-media"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t