Elaine is pictured before mountains and a sunset. She holds one hand in front of her chest and the other in front of her mouth, palms in.

Living and Sharing Pacific Island Culture

Elaine Talamaivao, a Polynesian dancer and educator and the director of Tala Mai Moana in Southern California, brings her lived experience with Samoan, Hawaiian, and Māori cultures to her community.

March 10, 2025  |  Read Article

Several dancers extend an arm in unison while dancing in long purple dresses outside the Iolani Palace.

Hula as Resistance

Vicky Holt Takamine, master hula teacher of Pua Aliʻi ʻIlima and the executive director of PAʻI Foundation, describes how she is working to preserve and perpetuate native Hawaiian arts and cultural traditions for future generations.

December 2, 2024  |  Read Article

Trusting the Dance, Navigating the Divide

Madelyn Biven, a dance artist based in Hawai'i, reflects on the duality she experienced pursuing dance in the continental US while simultaneously longing for her home on the islands. She shares how she navigated and found peace within that divide.

September 28, 2020  |  Read Article

Creating Hula in Response to Climate Change

An Interview with Patrick Makuakāne BY EMMALY WIEDERHOLT Patrick Makuakāne is the director of Nā Lei Hulu I Ka Wēkiu, a Bay Area-based dance company that blends traditional and contemporary forms of Hawaiian dance. He is presenting a new work that addresses climate change at Dance Mission Theater’s upcoming D.I.R.T. […]

March 7, 2019  |  Read Article