Spring 2009 - Issue 5

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Pacific Island Review Stars Five Cultures

Cherish Galea’i, CUH Life Editor

Mekel James, Staff Writer

A Chaminade tradition for over 10 years, the annual Pacific Island Review once again successfully showcased the diversity of the music and dances from the different cultural groups that populate the university’s campus.

What was different this year was there were five groups performing, an increase from past years: the Micronesian Club, the Hawaiian Club, the Chamorro Club, the Tahitian Club, and Lumana’i O Samoa, better known as the Samoan club. 

The PIR, as it is known, was held Nov. 13 in front of Sullivan Library.

Emcee Kuldip Shergill, a CUH senior, began the evening by saying hello in each clubs’ native language, keeping with the theme of the night. Following the introduction was a special speech served by Marcia “Laimana” Bulosan, Hawaiian Club’s advisor and dance coordinator, which detailed the nature and spirit of what makes PIR so special.

Micronesian Club then “wowed” the crowd as they performed their powerful rhythmic dances and usage of the bamboo sticks in their kumite (Japanese for sparring) spectacle.

Hawaiian Club was the next up with a primarily new group of members demonstrating their graceful, gentle and loving movements with each step that the took. The girls showed the crowd the true spirit of aloha and of the Hawaiian Islands.

Chamorro Club was next to perform. There was a brief folklore tale narrated after the first dance that involved the dancers, a story that explained, in what is described in Chamorro culture, as the creation of world. After the folklore tale was finished, the Chamorritas went out in search of partners in the audience of which to dance the salsa with.

The Tahitian Club then performed traditional Tahitian dancing to not-so-traditional music. They opened with a modern twist, using hip-hop and R&B music —an instant crowd pleaser.

A special pre-graduation lei ceremony was done before the final club presented. Graduating seniors from each of the clubs were asked to come up and receive a lei from a representative from the Office of Student Activities and Leadership representative.

The final group to perform was Lumana’i O Samoa (which included Silversword editor Cherish Galea’i). The audience enjoyed the very animated performers as they danced their traditional Samoan siva and slap dances. They even gave a short tribute to the late Michael Jackson, as they incorporated some of his famous dance moves in the final slap dance known as the sasa.

“I enjoyed this PIR very much,” said Moresa Langkilde, a CUH Senior. “This year included more clubs than the last PIR. I even got to see cultures that I haven’t heard of before.”

The Pacific Island Review was concluded by a joint performance by all the clubs in a Hawaiian song and dance called Oiwi e that choreographed by Bulosan.

(Silversword reporter Mekel James performed in this last dance.)