Hula is not the only Hawaiian tradition honored on the Merrie Monarch stage this week in Hilo.
This year, the festival is paying tribute to the 40th anniversary of the Hawaiian language revitalization movement.
ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi teachers, students and pioneers are in Hilo to perform on hula's biggest stage.
It's a rare experience for her students, says Haʻamauliola Aiona, a teacher at Ke Kula ʻO Nāwahīokalaniʻōpuʻu charter school and a veteran dancer for Hilo’s Hālau O Ka Ua Kani Lehua.
"ʻO ka hula ʻana ma kēlā kāhua Mele Manaka, he mea hou loa iā lākou. ʻO ka ʻoiaʻiʻo ke noʻonoʻo wau iā lākou a me ka ʻaoʻao moʻokūʻauhau, hū pā koke ka naʻau, ʻoiai noʻonoʻo i ke 40 makahiki o kēia paio ʻana, kēia noke mau ʻana no ka pono o kā kākou ʻōlelo."
Aiona said she's deeply moved to think of her students and their place in this 40-year history of fighting and persevering to do what's best for the ʻōlelo, the Hawaiian language.
"‘O kekahi ‘ao’ao o ka wā Mele Manaka ‘ike kākou a pau inā hānai ʻia ma Hilo, ʻo kēia ko kākou wā, ʻeā? Ka poʻe kuke meaʻai, nā kālepa hana noʻeau, ka poʻe hīmeni, nā ʻōlapa, he wā e paʻahana loa ai o Hilo, a he paʻahana nani ke ʻano."
She said the thing about Merrie Monarch is that anyone who grew up in Hilo knows this is their time to shine.
Local chefs, craftspeople, musicians, hula practitioners, this is a very busy time for Hilo, but it's a good busy.
All the hula and songs selected for Wednesday's Hōʻike Night performances were either choreographed or composed for the Hawaiian language revitalization movement over its 40-year history.
But putting on a flawless performance on the Merrie Monarch stage requires lots of practice — and stage managers like Zachary Alakaʻi Lum.
"A nui nā mea e hoʻomaʻamaʻa ai ma ia wā pōkole. No laila ke alakaʻi ʻana i ka pōkole a lōʻihi o kēlā me kēia mea, he koʻikoʻi kēlā i hiki ke hoʻomaʻamaʻa ʻia nā mea a pau."
Lum, a four-time Nā Hōkū Hanohano Award-winning musician with the band Keauhou, said hula is as much about the beat of the drum or the strum of the guitar as it is the dance itself.
"I leʻa ka hula i ka hoʻopaʻa, right? ʻO ka mele ka mea nui e hula ai ka hula, No laila ke nānea kākou i ka ʻike ʻana i ka hula, e hoʻomanaʻo paha kākou ʻo ka mele ke kahua o ia hula."
Lum said music is the foundation of the dance, so as hula fans tune in to watch the Merrie Monarch competition this week, remember the musicians behind the hula.
And of course, mele has been one way to perpetuate the language. The proliferation of ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi speakers over the past 40 years is an experience Aiona is glad her students get to witness.
"Ke nānā wau i ka nui o ka poʻe i hiki ke ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi, ʻo ia ka mea e nani ai ke ʻike nā haumāna ko lākou kuleana i loko o kēlā, a me ka hoʻōla mau ʻana i ka ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi."
Aiona said now they better understand their role in the movement.
Related coverage of Merrie Monarch Festival:
The competition kicks off Thursday evening with the Miss Aloha Hula contest. Want to watch Merrie Monarch live? Click here to learn more on the festival's official website.
