The Kaleoolakaikahikinaokalā troupe’s world premiere, “Hawaiki (The Homeland)” was another example of a genre not naturally suited to the stage format, yet it was also a welcome addition to the FFDF.  The piece began with chanting and a few men kneeling on a raised platform at the back corner of the stage, they drummed with their right hands while engaging in incredibly detailed, gestural storytelling with their left hands. All the while they hinged back and forward and raised and lowered themselves to the music they were making. This drum dancing was a form of seated, noho, hula. Then long lines of men in loincloths with huge bows at their waists and garlands of leaves in their hair (by Kumu Hula Kaleo Trinidad) formed to perform standing, luna, hulas in the kahiko, or traditional, style—meaning before any encounters with Western civilization. This was not the long grass skirt, ukelele, and steel guitar hula-ing that most Americans would think of first; that would be the auana hula, or “drift” hula—as in hula that drifted from the ancient ways.

This homeland hula was surprisingly militant, with lots of stomping and jogging and toe-heel enunciations. Some sections incorporated boxing moves, like the men were battle dancing. At times the piece resembled a Punch and Judy puppet show. The dancers’ hip motions were rather violent and often stopped abruptly, as if cut off midsentence. In contrast to extensive soloing of the hip hop troupe before, the Hawaiians remained in tight unison throughout the work, even as the tempo erratically quickened and slowed, led by the ipu heke (double gourd) drummer in the corner. Their chanting shifted dramatically too; they played with both the volume and quality of their voices. A sudden switch to a reedy falsetto had the audience chuckling. Though this was all in contrast to the mellifluous swaying of the more well-known auana hula style, their dancing evoked tidal motion nonetheless. Tiny, detailed movements of their hands, ankles, and gazes were offset by the side-to-side or front-and-back rocking formations of the group as a whole. 

The most surprising aspect of this performance was when the dancers broke into a solemn chant during their bows, interrupting the applause of the reliably boisterous FFD crowd. For once, they went silent. But then the cast grinned and flashed the hang loose symbol. The audience, fittingly, erupted like a volcano.