Merrie Monarch Festival
It honors King David Kalākaua, who was called the "Merrie Monarch" for his patronage of the arts and is credited with restoring many Hawaiian cultural traditions during his reign, including hula.
[1] Many hālau hula (schools), including some from the U.S. mainland[2] and some international performers,[3] attend the festival each year to participate in exhibitions and competitions.
[5] The competitive hula events end the week, and occur on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday;[5] They are televised and live-streamed for free online by Hawaii News Now (formerly KHII-TV, KFVE/K5).
[6] The 2023 Merrie Monarch hula competition began on April 13, 2023 at 6:00pm HST,[7] and was livestreamed free all three nights on the website of Hawaii News Now.
[1] Kalākaua was “a patron of the arts, especially music and dance,” and is credited with reviving many endangered native Hawaiian traditions such as mythology, medicine, and chant.
[10] The island had suffered from economic problems after the collapse of the sugar industry, and it was hoped that a festival would boost the depressed economy.
[10] This festival “consisted of a King Kalākaua beard look–alike contest, a barbershop quartet contest, a relay race, a re–creation of King Kalākaua's coronation, and a Holoku Ball among other events.”[10] George Naʻope was a well known Kumu Hula (teacher of Hawaiian dance) throughout the whole world.
[10] Today, the Merrie Monarch Festival is an annual week–long event culminating in three days of prestigious hula competition.
[3] For the festival, a Royal Court is created to represent King David Kalākaua and Queen Kapiʻolani and their family.
The Royal Court is coordinated by Uʻilani Peralto and Luana Kawelu, who each year search for a male and female to portray the king and queen.
Peralto says, “the selection committee looks to find two individuals who exemplify maturity, humility, and pride in the Hawaiian culture.” The court consists of 22 members total, typically represented by the friends and family of the chosen king and queen.
The rest of the royal court includes a counselor, kahu (caretaker), ladies-in-waiting, kahili bearers, chanters, and pu kane (conch shell blowers).
[13] The procession of the Royal Court precedes and ends each night of the Merrie Monarch hula competition, and they sit in state during the performances.
[3] The Wednesday Ho'ike Night Free exhibition is very popular, and often features international hālau from other Pacific islands and Japan,[14] and native or indigenous dancers and dances from locations such as Alaska and New Zealand.
[3] The festivities culminate in the annual competitions held at the Edith Kanakaʻole Multipurpose Stadium in Hoʻolulu Park.
# = Nth Place Wahine # = Nth Place Kāne O = Overall K = Kahiko A = 'Auana M = Miss Aloha Hula Notes: Jasmin Iolani Hakes' 2023 book Hula: A Novel, which won Honolulu magazine's award for Book of the Year About Hawaii, revolves around the Merrie Monarch competition.
