Festival brings Hawaiian dance, delicacies to Henderson

Don't misunderstand: Henderson is a very nice place, but not even Henderson can compete with the sun-kissed, sea-washed shores of Hawaii.

That said, the mutually pleasant environs of Hawaii and Henderson again will intersect this weekend when the 22nd annual Prince Kuhio Ho'olaule'a Festival brings the music, food and culture of Hawaii and the Pacific Islands to Southern Nevada.

The festival has been a staple of Henderson's entertainment calendar since 2007 - before that, the event took place in Las Vegas - and annually attracts more than 40,000 guests during its two-day run, said Tamar Hoapili, president of the Las Vegas Hawaiian Civic Club.

The club, in association with the city of Henderson, organizes the festival each year with the aim of celebrating Hawaiian and Pacific Island culture. Hoapili says guests come from as far away as Washington, Arizona and Utah, as well as Southern California and, even, Hawaii.

"I'm going to be bold enough to say that people have just heard that this festival is so awesome, they want to be a part of it," Hoapili says. "And I say that because I hear so many positive comments and so much positive feedback.

"It's just a mix of the music, the food - everyone loves the food - and then, of course, the shopping, the arts and the crafts."

Entertainment, offered on two stages, will include Hawaiian, Polynesian and Pacific Island-region singers, musicians and dancers, including traditional hula dancers. This year's musical headliner is Hoku Zuttermeister, one of Hawaii's top performers.

Food offerings will include such specialties as poi and Kalua pig, Hoapili said, and even hot dogs and hamburgers will be available for those whose culinary tastes are a bit more mainland-oriented.

This year's festival again will include a cultural village where guests can try their hand at creating such items as puka shell jewelry and fashioning flower leis from live flowers flown over from Hawaii.

The booth where the latter activity occurs always draws the most traffic, Hoapili notes. Why is that?

"The aroma," she answers. "When people pass by, it just draws people. You can smell the fresh flowers. And it's all the bright colors - we've got pink and purple and yellow and green. It's very drawing."

Guests also can browse vendors' booths - the festival typically draws between 80 and 100 vendors, Hoapili says - offering foods, art and craft items, jewelry and clothing.

Besides providing a fun day out for Southern Nevadans - there's no admission charge, so the fair is particularly family-friendly - the annual event raises money for scholarships.

"This is our largest fundraiser," Hoapili says, adding that the Las Vegas Hawaiian Civic Club so far has distributed more than $50,000 in scholarship funds, "and that's huge for a small club."

Above all, the Prince Kuhio Ho'olaule'a Festival strives to convey a spirit of aloha, which is more than just a greeting, Hoapili says.

While the word is a rough English translation of "hello" and "goodbye," she explains, it's also "a feeling - kind of like a feeling of love, or maybe, brotherly love or familyness between people."

Contact reporter John Przybys at jprzybys@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0280.