I’ve been listening to the all-holiday-music-all-the-time radio station lately (oh yes, I love holiday music!) and I heard the Hawaiian Christmas Song the other day. I call it that because I am sure to completely misspell the actual name of the song. But you know the one I am referring to, right? In any case, hearing that song reminded me that it is time to profile Communication Studies major Alisha Leong and her involvement with USF’s Hawaiian Ensemble in today’s “Club Ed.” I asked Alisha to tell us about the club:
COMS major and Hawaiian dancer Alisha!
“University of San Francisco’s Hawaiian Ensemble is a hula performance based organization. We focus on preserving and sharing the Hawaiian culture through community. We welcome and encourage all USF students to participate. Dance experience is not required, in fact, most members start off as non-dancers. Hawaiian Ensemble performs year round for events within the school community as well as events outside of campus.”
The USF Hawaiian Ensemble
One of the Hawaiian Ensemble’s main events is coming up this Thursday, December 1st: Taste of Hawaii! The event will be held in the UC 4th floor lounge from 6:00-9:00 pm. Tickets are $10 pre-sale and $12 at the door, and get you three hours of Hawaiian food and entertainment!
This event helps fundraise for the main event put on by the Hawaiian Ensemble: Ho’ike. This annual event is a showcase held once a year during the spring semester. All members of Hawaiian Ensemble participate in this two-hour performance. It showcases what the dancers have learned from the beginning of the school year. Dances range from the traditional hula, Tahitian, and Haka (performed by men). According to Alisha, “Ho’ike brings the community together as spectators and dancers share the aloha spirit!”
I asked Alisha to share why she became involved with the Hawaiian Ensemble: “I joined Hawaiian Ensemble last year (freshman year). When I moved to USF, I was thrilled to discover that there was a club like Hawaiian Ensemble because I had missed being able to dance. Hawaiian Ensemble gave me the opportunity to meet many new friends, learn more about the Hawaiian culture, and be involved in school activities. Everyone in the club is very welcoming and supportive- it feels like I have a second family.”
Dancers from a performance at Ho'ike
You can find out more about the Hawaiian Ensemble by e-mailing them at usfhawaiianensemble@gmail.com with the following information:
Name, Email Address, Cell #, Class Standing
You can also go to their dance class every Tuesday and Thursday from 7-8pm in UC 501.
Congratulations to Alisha and the rest of the Hawaiian Ensemble! I attended Ho’ike a few years ago and it was GREAT! The food is delicious and the dancers do an amazing job! I secretly have always wished I could be a hula dancer.
I’m waiting for everyone to stop laughing.
Still waiting.
In any case, seeing the Hawaiian Ensemble perform cemented in my mind that this will likely never happen for me, but it absolutely could for you! You don’t have to be a student from Hawaii or the Pacific Islands to join the Hawaiian Ensemble, so if you are interested, contact them for more information! Aloha!
