Teoraroa at San Jose Tahiti Fete
Community Contributed
By Kilia Purdy-Avelino
Molokai’s only pupu ‘ori, or Tahitian dance halau, Teoraroa Molokai, was represented by a small group of dancers and musicians in their debut on a stage known as the largest Tahiti Fete in the U.S. in San Jose, California on Friday, June 30. Teoraroa Molokai had three soloists, and a spectacular ahuroa on Saturday, July 1. The Molokai group accompanying Kumu Chelsea Lima-Tanaka to San Jose, consisted of seven vahine dancers and four musicians.
With less than a year of dancing together — and for most, their first time learning Tahitian ‘ori (dance — the purpose of their entrance was not foremost for the competition, but a tribute to the late Kalen Isamu Tanaka, father of Chelsea and Kalene Tanaka.…