First performance of 80th Annual Nā Hula Festival now available online on YouTube

As the Hawaiian culture is perpetuated through the artistry and grace of hula under pandemic circumstances, the Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) debuted the 80th Annual Nā Hula Festival virtually on DPR’s YouTube Channel at bit.ly/DPRyoutube

Beginning today, new videos will be released each week in the month of August beginning with performances from Hālau nā Pua Hala Kūnou i ke Kai and the City’s very own Royal Hawaiian Band. The remaining performances include:

Puanani Alama Hula Studio

Nā Wāhine o ka Hula mai ka Pu‘uwai

Nā Kūpuna o Ko‘olau / Nā ‘Ōpio o Ko‘olau

As a nod to the history of this long-standing traditional of hula, DPR will be posting performances from several halau filmed during the 2014 Nā Hula Festival for the final week of this year’s virtual fest, including:

Hālau Hula o Hōkūlani

Hālau Hula o Pua ‘A‘ala Hone

Hula Hui o Kapunahala

Hālau Hula ‘o Nawahine

The Nā Hula Festival has celebrated Hawai‘i’s premiere dance form since its creation in 1940, when DPR’s kumu hula (hula instructors) did a hō‘ike (showcase) of their haumāna (students). This tradition has continued, making Nā Hula Festival the longest-running, annual, non-competitive hula event in Hawai‘i! 

For more information, including a flyer of this year’s festival, visit bit.ly/NaHulaFest