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A wonderful way to feel the energy of Hawaii, strengthen the mind-body connection, gently tone your body and your core, and enjoy dancing to beautiful Hawaiian music. No experience necessary. Men, Women age 15 years and older welcome! Tuesdays 11 am - 12 noon Saturdays 11 am - 12 noon
Age 5 - 10 years old. Boys & girls welcome. Learn basic hands and feet motion and the stories of Hawaii.
Mondays
August 1, 8, 15
3 - 4 PM
Kahiko or classical hula is dance to Hawaiian chanting. It's a deeper dive into the stories of the dance, the translations and application to life. Prerequisite -
2 months Beginning Hula Classes or permission of Kumu.
Age 16 years and older
Men and Women welcome Wednesdays 8 - 9 pm
Dance to the melodic melodies of Hawaii.
Men, Women aged 16 years and older
2 months experience or
Wednesdays
7 - 8 pm
All classes are held at our
sister organization:
38 Lake Street
Oak Park, IL.
For more information call 708-297-6321
or email
Check our
for the most current
Schedule of Classes
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Halau Hula Ka Noʻeau
30th Homecoming Reunion
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| Kumu Hula Michael Pili Pang, 30th Anniversary Homecoming Reunion dress rehearsal, Kahilu Theatre, Waimea, Hawaii
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| Kumu June Tanoue, Nicole Sumida, Tasha Fouts and Sarah Evans backstage ready for Kawika
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Mahalo Nui Loa!
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We are so appreciative of all the kokua (help) that you give to Halau i Ka Pono!!! Mahalo nui (big thank yous) in June and July to: Brian Tanouye, Oscar Chen, Julie Kase, Hoda Boyer, Nicole Sumida, Kailani and Mariko Yu, Tasha Fouts, DeLacy Sarantos, Sarah Evans, Laila and Jaida Rosenthal, Junko Kobayashi, Millenium Park Family Fun Festival; Na Kumu Hula Michael Pili Pang, Keikilani Curnan, Patti Kahelelani Luzon, Wendi Paʻahana Roehrig, Alva Kamalani, Sharon Ihikapuokalani Goodman, Cherise Mundon; Ricia and Nick Shema, Robert & Jackie Tanoue, Czerina Salud and Tami Kauakea Winston.
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Na Kumu Hula Michael Pili Pang & June Kaililani Tanoue
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I was so excited to go to the 30th anniversary of Halau Hula Ka Noʻeau (my teacherʻs halau (hula school)) and to bring with me three of my haumana (students) to Waimea, Hawaii - land of the Kipuʻupuʻu rain. The Kipuʻupuʻu rain is cold and as expected, it kept us cool for the days we were there.
I began studying hula 28 years ago in Halau Hula Ka Noʻeau. I kept at it for thirteen years and then started to teach others to dance. Seven years ago I formally opened my hula school, Halau i Ka Pono (place that cultivates goodness), in Chicago.
Halau i Ka Pono made the long exciting journey to Waimea, Hawaii Island, for the 30th homecoming reunion. We stayed at an airbnb right next to where I had lived in Waimea on Mana Road. There had been some changes: a beautiful paved road, new to our subdivision, went far beyond it. The organic gourmet lettuce field had expanded to another lot. And of course, there were more houses.
But it was still quiet on Mana Road. All you could hear was the wind buffeting the trees lining miles of pasture and the birds chirping contentedly. There were still no street lights, and at night the sky was ablaze with the twinkling stars of the Milky Way. Mauna Kea sat great and tall - vast in the open space of pastures and ranch land at its base.
My students practiced barefoot on the grass. At 3,000 feet elevation it was cool with sun only peeking out between clouds. Two horses in the adjoining pasture came over to see what all the commotion was and then nonchalantly went back to grazing on their sweet, green grass.
Time moved quickly for us. Soon it was time to go to the Kahilu Theatre to meet my Hula ʻOhana (family) and practice our blocking on stage. It was thrilling to see everyone and to introduce my haumana. In the past, my hula sisters and I had given innumerable performances at this theatre. I noticed that the theatre was now more developed - it had a stunning lobby with a shiny wooden ticket desk, TV monitors and a small bar for drinks.
It felt so good to be reunited with my hula sisters - sisters with whom I had spent many precious hours dancing. When you dance a lot with the same group of people, you become maʻa (attuned to them) and the many dancers become as one dancer.
We sang and danced together as if no time had passed. Yet some of us had gained or lost weight while some had stayed the same. Perhaps our pitch had become a little lower and our voices now carried more life experience from the years that had sped by. But our voices remained warm and true. We blended as we had always done - in harmony and in love.
I noticed how much listening I was doing as I sang. I observed how I could hear and feel my hula sisters. I realized how I blended in or didnʻt. To become maʻa, listening is a key. We chant and sing with our ears as much as with our voices.
You can deny that time is passing and think that everything will stay the same. But I could see, in this 30th year reunion, that the torch which was first lit by my kumu, Michael Pili Pang, was alive and well in all of his students who were now teachers - my kumu sisters. They and I were passing his light, his knowledge, through ourselves to our students. It is a living legacy and genealogy.
There were about 80 students, of all ages, dancing old and new hula choreography to beautiful songs. These lovely melodic ballads brought tears to my eyes as I saw mature students deeply feeling the message of the songs as they danced the story. The fast fun hulas that the younger students did brought big smiles and much applause.
My kumu asked me just before my students started dancing, "what is the hardest thing about teaching hula in Chicago?" I couldnʻt think of any one thing. Finally I said, "Itʻs not really hard.... I just miss you all there."
This profound sharing of mind, heart and spirit has always nourished me deeply. It was something that I had forgotten I needed. Why do hula in Chicago? It makes me whole - this coming together of people dancing from their puʻuwai (hearts) like a flock of flying birds.
Malama pono (take care of your body, mind and heart),
June Kaililani Tanoue
Kumu Hula and Sensei
P.S. Hereʻs the "Breath of Hawaii" slideshow of Halau i Ka Ponoʻs performance from this past May.
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Tasha Fouts on Racism
"Fresh off the Slow Boat"
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Rudy and Tasha
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Tasha Fouts practices hula at Halau i Ka Pono. She manages a small boutique in Geneva and writes poetry. She loves dogs. She shared her latest blog entry with us on an important subject.
Today, when I woke, I padded downstairs to my bookcases, scanned the shelves, and pulled three books of literary theory. It should be noted that I do not love reading theory; for me wading through it is like having adult braces (and not the invisalign kind): painful and slightly demeaning.
But there I was at 7:00am cracking open the postcolonial theorists Glissant, Chin, and Memmi over a hot cup of coffee and trying to work through issues of race and identity. And I was there because, for me, intellectualizing an issue is easier than confronting it or feeling it. I had had an uncomfortable moment this week that sat with me, and I still can't shake it. I realize how vague this all sounds. So let me be concrete and give you the scene.
On Tuesday night two of my girlfriends stopped by. They had just come from another engagement and had had a couple of glasses of wine. The night was hot so we sat on the back porch, drank a little more wine and laughed. The moon was out and it illuminated them: blond hair, wide smiles, and peaches and cream skin glowing in the moonlight.
Ten minutes into our conversation another friend called and said her husband was out late at a work meeting and invited us over. We piled into the car. On the way we decided it would be rude to not bring wine - in the Midwest you never show up to a party empty handed - so we stopped at the local convenience store which is run by an Indian man. My friend J- ran into the store to grab the chardonnay.
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About Us|
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Successful Halau Fundraiser with Hawaiians Kumu Michael Pili Pang, Keikilani Curnan, Davin, Al, Ryan
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Halau i Ka Pono means School that Cultivates the Goodness. We teach Hula which we define as the art of Hawaiian dance expressing all that we see, hear, taste, touch, and feel.
Hula and healing go hand in hand in our Halau. The dance connects us to the grounding energy of the earth and opens us to the warm spirit of Aloha (love).
Come join us! We have wonderful introductory classes for adult beginners! No experience necessary.
Contact Kumu June at june.tanoue@zlmc.org for more information. May your lives be full of aloha blessings!
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