Learning to Dance the Hula
July 7th, 2008 by Rocco
Learning to dance the hula is a popular attraction for many Hawaiian tourists. Where else can you learn to sway to music while telling a story passed down through generations of Hawaiian natives? Learning to dance the hula is much more than just a novelty dance.
The History of Hula
The Hawaiian culture passes down its tales of history through storytelling. It is this preferred method of oral history that gave birth to the hula dance. No one agrees who performed the first hula dance, or even when the first dance took place. The Hawaiians believe that the very first hula dance was performed by a god or goddess, making the hula an inherently sacred act.
Traditionally, the hula dance is a sacred dance and is often a part of the Native Hawaiian people’s worship. Both men and women, despite popular belief on the mainland U.S., dance the traditional hula. This ritualistic dance was once a part of sacred religious rituals and ceremonies, but today, it is mainly danced as a form of entertainment.
Years ago, hula dancers in training were enrolled in hula dancing school. Student dancers adhered to a strict set of rules that reflected the sacredness of the hula dance. Students were not permitted to cut their hair or fingernails, engage in sexual activities, or eat certain foods. These old style hula dancers, referred to as dancers of hula kahiko, included chanting in their dance. The chanting told the story of the hula more so than the movements of the dancer’s body.
Modern hula dancers, dancing hula auana, use their physical actions to tell a story. This form of hula dancing is most often devoid of any chanting and is intended for entertainment purposes. When visiting Hawaii today, it is possible to see both types of hula dance, the traditional and the new, even in the same performance.
During a hula dance, the hula dancer is taught to believe that they are actually becoming the object they are portraying in the dance. If the hula calls for an imitation of a palm tree swaying in the wind, the hula dancer becomes that palm tree for the performance. The movements of the hula dancer’s entire body tell a story, but the movements of the hands are especially meaningful.
Learning to dance the hula is a terrific way to immerse yourself in the Hawaiian culture and take a piece of Hawaii back home with you when your vacation ends.