MAILE K HOOMALU
Maile's BLOG
Born and raised in Oakland, CA I am the product of growing up in the 80’s in a place where creativity and self expression were both nurtured and encouraged. I found my passion in dance and performing. Starting ballet at the age of 3 and continuing on through most of my teenage years, I found my place at Oakland Ballet. It was there that I was taught the fundamentals of dance that i still carry with me til today. It was through my ballet teacher Ronn, that I learned how to hold my posture up, how to make my arms,hands and fingers soft but still strong, how to spot when turning, how important warming up and stretching is before starting….the list can go on and on. I learned the importance of perseverance, dedication and stage presence, but mostly I learned “NO PAIN NO GAIN”.
Growing up, every summer my family would take a month long vacation to Oahu to visit my mom’s side of the family. It was during these summers that my mom and I would take Da Bus down town to the Royal Hawaiian Shopping center every Wednesday morning to take the free hula lessons they offered to the tourists. It were these lessons that would stay with me til today. I can still remember what it felt like learning the different hula steps, listening to the hapa haole songs we were learning and then adding in the hands! At the end of the lesson we got to turn around and dance our song to the people passing by.
I remember vividly looking for my mom every time and seeing her beaming with pride with a big smile on her face. Every single time she would reward me with a coconut shave ice from the Island Snow kiosk next door. After several years of doing this, we decided maybe we could look for hula near us back at home in Oakland.
It was June of 1993 that I walked into the (then Na Mele Hula Ohana) Academy of Hawaiian Arts and knew this was it for me! For the past 30 years I have been able to call Foothill Square in Oakland CA, home. The countless hours, days, weeks, and years I’ve spent at the halau have seen me through so many of life’s ups and downs. Little did I know what my life had in store, being able to travel the world, sharing something I love to do has been that little 3 year old ballerina’s dream come true.
When I started hula I figured it would be easy...
When I started hula I figured it would be easy for me because of my ballet training, but boy was I wrong! I can still feel the burning of my thighs, arms, and back the day after my first class, not even realizing I could be sore there. I remember my mom laughing at me as I was curled up on the couch not able to walk. I found it so interesting how different ballet and hula were in every way. I watched as my “long and lean” ballet legs morphed into the muscular "thunder thighs" I’ve had ever since. You dancers out there know the abuse we put our bodies through and 30 plus years later, I’m still sore and can't walk for a couple days after a hard practice! It just never gets easier hahaha!
During my 30 years of dancing hula I have had the opportunity to be in countless performances and competitions all over the Bay Area, Southern California, Hawaii, throughout Japan and even Taiwan (a far cry from the yearly Nutcracker season we would have at the Paramount Theater and occasional spring ballet recital). It is on any stage and dancing that I have found I am most comfortable and able to express myself. Feeling the rush of adrenaline as you wait in the wings, pumping yourself up to put all you have out on the floor is one of the things I have carried with me from my days dancing ballet, especially today as I prepare to step on the Merrie Monarch stage once again.
I have had the opportunity to dance at the Merrie Monarch Hula Festival 8 times, but have trained for 10. The wahine team had to pull out of performing in 2016 due to unforseen circumstances and in 2020 we were preparing for a come back and Covid hit and Merrie Monarch was cancelled. Although it was heartbreaking to experience, one thing I have learned in my 40 year dance career is that the show must go on! Every journey, to every Merrie Monarch, has been unique from the dancers, the dance and the lessons we learned along the way.
This Merrie Monarch I have the opportunity again to share this experience with my children, a memory I know we will all cherish through the years.
As I watch my kids grow into the hula dancers they are, I am reminded of my mom and how she probably felt watching me dance all those years ago, beaming with pride and big smile on her face.
The Academy of Hawaiian Arts has proven time and time again that we are here to entertain and inspire, this time will be no exception!