The Hawaiʻi Wildlife Center has teamed up with Conservation Council for Hawaiʻi to bring back the Hawaiʻi Island Festival of Birds on October 21 (Saturday) at the Grand Naniloa Hotel Hilo. As a part of the festival, we are putting on a Hōʻike and inviting Hālau to present one hula to lift up our native manu and inspire the community. This is a highly intentional request, as we are requesting mele and ʻoli be about or include native birds. This Hōʻike has a definite conservation intent and is not simply about providing entertainment for festival attendees.

We are asking each Hālau to kōkua one hula presentation, up to 10 minutes (shorter time is fine also, you are not required to fill the entire 10 minutes.). Group size is limited to up to 10 people (dancers and musicians) per hula presentation due to limited stage space. If you have a large Hālau and more haumana who would like to participate, you may choose to present two manu hula to give more Hālau members an opportunity to present.

As a mahalo, all performers including musicians will receive complementary admission to the entire Hawai‘i Island Festival of Birds including the bird fair, Hōʻike, and guest speakers. The Hawaiʻi Division of Forestry and Wildlife has also kindly offered exclusive field trips with bird experts to Hālau that participate in the Hōʻike as an additional token of gratitude. The trip will be scheduled at a day/time that work best for both the Hālau and DOFAW and can be either before or after the festival.

If you’d like to present at the Hōʻike, there is an online application form available (the link is in the invitation letter). If you prefer using a word document, we have also created a separate word doc as well.

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Please feel free to contact us with any questions you may have.

Mahalo for your consideration. We hope to see you at the Festival!

FAQ | Hōʻike Questions

Q: There is a limit of 10 people per presentation. What if I have more Hālau members who would like to participate?
A: We limited the number of people to 10 per presentation due to stage space limitations. If you have more than 10 people who would like to participate, you may choose to take an additional 10-min slot for another hula presentation to give more Hālau members the opportunity to take part in the festival.

Q: Does a ka‘i and hoʻi count as additional hula? Could we include them in our presentation?

A: We consider kaʻi and hoʻi as a part of one presentation. If your presentation includes a kaʻi and hoʻi that’s great and would not need an additional presentation slot.

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