Nonosina Hawaii Tane (Male) Dancers Sweep Top Awards
La‘ie, HI - July 5, 2008 - The eighth annual Te Mahana Hiro‘a O Tahiti Festival concluded this afternoon at the Polynesian Cultural Center featuring more than 100 tamari‘i (youth) dancers with some as young as young as three years old. The fragrance of fresh tiare was in the air as sounds of to‘ere (Tahitian drums) and beautiful costumes of feathers, flowers and fronds transformed the Pacific Tehater stage into a scne straight from the islands of Tahiti.
For the second year in a row Chelsea Clement of Te 'e'a 'o te Turama won the overall vahine (female) award in the senior group as well as top honors in the 14 to 15-year-old dance category. LJ Mariteragi of Nonosina Hawai‘i also had back-to-back wins and took the overall senior tane, or male, solo dance competition and the 16 to 18-year-old dance category.
Shandy Hopeau of Tiare Ura O Tahiti won the overall junior female dance award, as well as the 9 to 11-year-old dance category. Nonosina's Jordan Mariteragi, LJ Mariteragi's brother, also took top honors for the junior male dance division, and the 9 to 11-year-old dance category. The young men of Nonosina Hawai‘i also dominated the competition garnering all of the top spots in each age category (see list of winners below).
The festival highlighting the 'ori Tahiti (Tahitian dance) soloists was sponsored in part by the Hawai‘i Tourism Authority and the City & County of Honolulu. Tane, or male, dancers were judged on their pa‘oti – the masculine style of ‘ori Tahiti that features sharp scissor-like movements of the legs. Vahine, or female, dancers were judged on their fa‘arapu. This feminine dance is the more familiar style of Tahitian dance, characterized by quick hip movements. All dancers were judged on their costumes, the coordination and timing of their dance with the drumming and the overall presentation of their performance.
"It takes a lot for these tamari‘i to get up onstage by themselves to perform in front of hundreds of people, and their passion is an insipiration," said Raymond Mariteragi, Tahitian cultural specialist at the PCC and coordinator of Te Mahana Hiro‘a O Tahiti. "What inspires me even more is seeing the next generation show their appreciation and understanding of the Tahitian culture."
Founded in 1963 as a non-profit organization, the PCC has entertained more than 33 million visitors while preserving and portraying the culture, arts and crafts of Polynesia to the rest of the world. In addition, the PCC has provided financial assistance to 17,000 young people from over 70 different countries while they attend Brigham Young University-Hawai‘i. As a non-profit organization, 100 percent of PCC's revenue is used for daily operations and to support education.
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TE MAHANA HIRO‘A O TAHITI 2008 RESULTS
OVERALL WINNERS
TAMARII (AGE 3-11)
- Vahine (Female) - Shandy Hopeau, Tiare Ura O Tahiti
- Tane (Male) - Jordan Mariteragi, Nonosina Hawai‘i
TAURE‘ARE‘A (AGE 12-18)
- Vahine - Chelsea Clement, Te 'e'a 'o te Turama
- Tane - LJ Mariteragi, Nonosina Hawai‘i
SOLO COMPETITION RESULTS TAMARII DIVISION (AGES 3-11)
VAHINE
Age 3-4
- 1. Keawaiki Jones, Marania Haoragi
- 2. Isabella Tran, Marania Haoragi
- 3. Nauva-Lei Furtado, Marania Haoragi
Age 5-6
- 1. Kanoe Navares, Manutahi
- 2. Kaylee Tabangay, Tiare Ura O Tahiti
- 3. Destiny Ramilo, Matarii Tahiti
Age 7-8
- 1. Keawaiki Jones, Marania Haoragi
- 2. Isabella Tran, Marania Haoragi
- 3. Nauva-Lei Furtado, Marania Haoragi
Age 9-11
- 1. Shandy Hopeau, Tiare Ura O Tahiti
- 2. Macy S. Panajon, Pupu Ote Iti Ra
- 3. Sabrina Parrish, Marania Haoragi
TANE
Age 3-4
- 1. Taiuli Wimahi, Nonosina Hawai‘i
- 2. Qamdon Josue, Te 'e'a 'o te Turama
Age 5-6
- 1. Teahu Mariteragi, Nonosina Hawai‘i
- 2. Teagan Kaitoku, Nonosina Hawai‘i
- 3. Kwinton Ho Ching, Nonosina Hawai‘i
Age 7-8
- 1. Micah Mariteragi, Nonosina Hawai‘i
- 2. Troy Spacek
- 3. Tiloi Lolotai, Nonosina Hawai‘i
Age 9-11
- 1. Jordan Mariteragi, Nonosina Hawai‘i
- 2. Teancum Kaitoku, Nonosina Hawai‘i
- 3. Kaleb Ho Ching, Nonosina Hawai‘i
SOLO COMPETITION RESULTS TAURE‘ARE‘A DIVISION (AGES 12-18)
VAHINE
Age 12-13
- 1. Jazmine Emerson, Nonosina Hawai‘i
- 2. Ashlen Kinilau, Pupu Ote Iti Ra
- 3. Shanelle Ramelb, Pupu Ote Iti Ra
Age 14-15
- 1. Chelsea R. Clement, Te 'e'a 'o te Turama
- 2. Angela-Jeanell Cezar, Tiare Ura O Tahiti
- 3. Shayna Lei Soma, Tiare Ura O Tahiti
Age 16-18
- 1. Kei Aoki, Nonosina Hawai‘i
- 2. Dayna Higa, Manutahi
- 3. Monique Orton, Nonosina Hawai‘i
TANE
Age 12-13
- 1. Kameron Ho Ching, Nonosina Hawai‘i
Age 14-15
- 1. Joshua Sorenson, Nonosina Hawai‘i
Age 16-18
- 1. LJ Mariteragi, Nonosina Hawai‘i
- 2. Cameron Howser, Pupu Ote Iti Ra
