Oahu halau clinches top honors at Merrie Monarch Festival. Relive all their 2023 performances here
The 2023 Merrie Monarch festival has wrapped up and it was an amazing week of hula and Hawaiian culture in Hilo.
Published: Apr. 16, 2023 at 1:05 AM HST|Updated: Apr. 16, 2023 at 4:50 PM HST
HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - Oahu halau Ka Lā ‘Ōnohi Mai O Ha’eha’e, under the direction of Tracie and Keawe Lopes, took top honors at the 60th annual Merrie Monarch Festival.
The win was the culmination of stunning hula performances in the kahiko and ‘auana competitions.
The overall honor capped off an incredibly successful festival for the halau. This year’s Miss Aloha Hula — Agnes Renee Leihiwahiwaikapolionāmakua Thronas Brown — hails from Ka Lā ʻŌnohi Mai O Haʻehaʻe.
Watch performances from all three nights of competition at the Merrie Monarch Festival here.
Relive the performances the halau brought to the Merrie Monarch Festival stage this year:
Composed by renowned musician Bina Mossman, this mele honors a loved one who is likened to the special lei adorning her shoulders.
This is a composition by “Hawaiʻi’s Song Bird” Lena Machado.
This hula ʻōlapa is in honor of Princess Ruth Keʻelikōlani and is reminiscent of those composed for the aliʻi by a select group of composers.
Penned by Lolokū, this composition honors Puna and Kumukahi where the sun rises in the most eastern point of all the Hawaiian Islands.
Here’s a look at the evening’s other division winners:
- Kane Kahiko: Hālau Kekuaokalā'au’ala’iliahi (Kumu Haunani and ‘Iliahi Paredes)
- Wahine Kahiko: Ka Lā ‘Ōnohi Mai O Ha’eha’eNā (Kumu Hula Tracie and Keawe Lopes)
- Kane ‘Auana: Hālau HiʻiakaināmakalehuaKumu (Robert Keʻano Kaʻupu IV and Lono Padilla)
- Wahine ‘Auana: Hālau HiʻiakaināmakalehuaKumu (Robert Keʻano Kaʻupu IV and Lono Padilla)
- Kane Overall Winner: Hālau Kekuaokalā'au’ala’iliahi (Kumu Haunani and ‘Iliahi Paredes)
- Wahine Overall Winner: Ka Lā ‘Ōnohi Mai O Ha’eha’e (Kumu Tracie and Keawe Lopes)
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