Winners Announced of the 7th Annual Moku O Keawe International Hula Festival

Winners of the 7th Annual Moku O Keawe International Hula Festival were announced Saturday night to an enthusiastic crowd at Waikoloa Bowl in Queens’ Gardens.  Awards were presented to Makua Solo, Wahine Solo and Wahine Hālau, after three nights of competition in ancient Kahiko and modern ‘Auana divisions.  (Kupuna Hālau and Solo winners were announced on Friday).

Sig Zane, Mary Jane Kamoku, Nalani Kanakaole and Kumu Alberta Nicolas

The top-scoring Wahine Hālau was Hui Hula Naleikalākupua (1,102 points) from Japan, under the direction of Kumu Hula Yukiko Hanayama.  In second place was Hawai‘i Island’s own Beamer-Solomon Hālau O Po‘ohala (1,089 points), Kumu Hula Hulali Solomon Covington.  Covington’s niece, Leiomalama Solomon, won the Wahine Solo title; she performed “Kimo Hula,” composed by her great-great-grandmother Helen Desha Beamer, for the ‘auana selection.

Hulali Solomon Covington, Leiomalama Solomon, Nalani Kanakaole and Kuhao Zane

Fourteen hālau—seven from Japan, six from Hawaii and one from Mexico—competed in the three-night event, which also featured Hawaiian cultural workshops and Made-in-Hawai‘i Marketplace during the day at Waikoloa Beach Marriott Resort and Spa.

Kuhao Zane. Sig Zane, Kumu Yukiko Hanayama and Nalani Kanakaole

WINNERS 7th Annual Moku O Keawe International Hula Festival:

• 2nd Place Makua Solo Hula: Kyushu Hawaiian Association Kamalu Lani, 490 points, Kumu Hula: Keiko Ito Soloist: Sanami Hayashi
• 1st Place Makua Solo Hula: Hula Hālau Kahula O Hawai‘i, 545 points, Kumu Hula: Kyoko Kubokawa, Soloist: Miyuki Iota
• 3rd Place Wahine Hula: Kyushu Hawaiian Association Kamalu Lani, 1,084 points, Kumu Hula: Keiko Ito
• 2nd Place Wahine Hula: Beamer-Solomon Hālau O Po‘ohala, 1,089 points, Kumu Hula: Hulali Solomon Covington
• 1st Place Wahine Hula: Hui Hula Naleikalākupua, 1,102 points, Kumu Hula: Yukiko Hanayama
• 3rd Place Solo Hula: Koga Mamina Hula Studio, 1,009 points, Kumu Hula: Mamina Koga, Soloist: Hiromi Sato
• 2nd Place Solo Hula: Hula Hālau Kahula O Hawai‘i, 1,018 points, Kumu Hula: Kyoko Kubokawa, Soloist: Megumi Toyosawa
• 1st Place Solo Hula: Beamer-Solomon Hālau O Po‘ohala 1,086 points, Kumu Hula: Hulali Solomon Covington, Soloist: Leiomalama Solomon
• 3rd Place Kūpuna Hula: Hui Hula Naleikalakupua, 598 points, Kumu Hula: Yukiko Hanayama
• 2nd Place Kūpuna Hula: Hula Hālau Plumeria Kamalu Lani, 618 points, Kumu Hula: Harumi Soejima
• 1st Place Kūpuna Hula: Hālau I Ka Wekiu, 634 points, Kumu Hula: Karl Veto Baker and Michael Casupang

The Moku O Keawe International Festival is sponsored by the Moku O Keawe Foundation, a private nonprofit organization dedicated to enhancing, enriching and educating the practice and development of hula and its associated arts.  Sponsors include Waikoloa Beach Resort, the Hawai‘i Tourism Authority/County of Hawai‘i CPEP Program and others.  For information and tickets to events, visit www.MOKIF.com/updates.