Story & Photos by Brian Bradley
The Aloha Spirit was alive and well in the EMU Ballroom for Hawai’i Club’s 36^th Annual Lu’au. The night featured genuine clothes, merchandise, leis, and food, some of which had been flown in directly from the island state.
The Ballroom was adorned with large posters depicting all of the Hawaiian Islands, and tables had been set with vases full of shells. Every seat at every table was full.
The night began with a traditional Hawaiian meal consisting of rice, macaroni salad, kalua pig, teriyaki chicken, and lomi salmon. The event was catered by Noho’s Hawaiian Café. (Personally, I highly recommend getting lomi salmon whenever possible). For those with a sweet tooth, Ululani’s Hawaiian Shave Ice flew to Eugene from Hawaii especially for the lu’au. During dinner, excellent entertainment was provided by a band called Some Guys, who of course included a very skilled ukulele player. They played a mixture of cover and original songs.
Promptly following dinner, the performances began. Before each dance, behind-the-scenes footage featured members of the Hawai’i Club explaining the upcoming dances, information incredibly helpful for those who don’t know much about the Hawaiian Culture.
The first performance began with the song “E Ho Mai,” a traditional welcoming chant about the explosive relationship between the two legendary sisters Pele and Hi’iaka. The second dance involved only three men, and told the story of a seafarer. This performance actually incorporated the audience as the trio asked everyone to cheer and sing along as they “paddled” their way through the ocean.
The third number, a couples’ dance, was the most unexpected of the night. Performers came out dressed in jeans and plaid bandannas, each with a touch of Hawaiian flare. The dance itself mixed traditional hula with square or line dancing to form one unified number.
The lu’au’s showstopper, however, was a Tahitian dance to the song “Pate Pate.” This very high-energy dance required more hip movement then any other of the evening’s dances. After finishing, the performers went out into the audience to find those brave enough to try to learn the basic moves on stage. I, immersion journalist that I am, happened to be one of those brave people. Seven others joined me in attempting to do this hip-shaking dance. It was a great way to get the audience involved and also teach everyone more about the culture.
The lu’au truly deserves the title of “biggest cultural event on campus” because of all the hard work and effort put in by those who spent almost a year planning it. UO student and lu’au coordinator Tani Saito said it best: “My favorite part of the lu’au was seeing it all come together.”

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