{"id":229107,"date":"2026-02-05T11:54:37","date_gmt":"2026-02-05T21:54:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=229107"},"modified":"2026-02-05T12:52:03","modified_gmt":"2026-02-05T22:52:03","slug":"lele-wale","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2026\/02\/05\/lele-wale\/","title":{"rendered":"Lahaina\u2019s story lives in new hana keaka production"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
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From left, Kaʻiulani<\/span> Iaea, Ramon Francis and Kekililani Helekahi. (Photo credit: C. Lamborn)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The University of Hawaiʻi<\/span> at M\u0101noa will debut Lele Wale<\/a>, a new hana keaka (Hawaiian theatre work) that takes audiences on a journey of community rebuilding in the wake of the Lahaina wildfires. The production honors those who were lost, those who survived, and those who still carry the weight of rebuilding on Maui. Performances run March 4–8 in the Earle Ernst Lab Theatre at Kennedy Theatre.<\/p>\n

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Waileia Tupou plays character Lele in the production. (Photo credit: C. Lamborn)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Created by 东精影业<\/abbr> M\u0101noa Hawaiian theatre<\/a> master of fine arts (MFA<\/abbr>) candidate Ikaika Mendez, Lele Wale does not seek to recreate the tragic wildfires. Instead, the work moves through memory, music and movement to create space to remember, grieve and reflect on what comes next for both people and place. For Mendez, a Maui native, Lahaina holds deep personal meaning.<\/p>\n

“Although I am from Kanaio, Lahaina became the place where I learned what it meant to be a performer in service to people and place\u2026working at the Feast at Lele Lūʻau<\/span> at just 15 years old,\u201d said Mendez. “I learned discipline, responsibility and the power of storytelling through music and movement. That experience deeply influenced my path, leading me to pursue education in music, ʻōlelo<\/span> Hawaiʻi<\/span> (Hawaiian language), and ultimately my MFA<\/abbr> in hana keaka.\u201d<\/p>\n

Voices of place<\/h2>\n

Lele is the traditional place name for Lahaina. In ʻōlelo<\/span> Hawaiʻi<\/span>, lele wale evokes prayer and speaks to motion, as well as the act of releasing. The hana keaka is performed in a combination of ʻōlelo<\/span> Hawaiʻi<\/span>, Hawaiʻi<\/span> Creole English (Pidgin) and English intertwined with live music, hula and imagery.<\/p>\n

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The hana keaka aims to create space to remember, grieve and reflect. (Photo credit: C. Lamborn)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“There are experiences, emotions and understandings that cannot be fully expressed in English, so we speak them, sing them and chant them in ʻōlelo<\/span> Hawaiʻi<\/span>,\u201d said Mendez. “At the same time, Pidgin and English reflect the lived reality of Lahaina today: the sounds of home, work, family and community.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ticket information<\/strong><\/p>\n

Performances are Wednesday through Saturday at 7:30 p.m., with a Sunday matinee at 2 p.m. Tickets range $9–$18.<\/a><\/p>\n

A free post-show Q&A with the director and cast will follow the Friday, March 6th performance for ticket holders.<\/p>\n

Content advisories: Covers themes connected to wildfire, loss of life, strong language, haze effects and flashing lights. Questions about tickets or accessibility can be directed to ktbox@hawaii.edu<\/a> or (808) 956-7655.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hawaiian theatre production Lele Wale takes audiences on a journey of community rebuilding in the wake of the Lahaina wildfires.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":229110,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[1471,33,1057,131,130,76,9],"class_list":["post-229107","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community","tag-college-of-arts-languages-and-letters","tag-hawaiian","tag-hawaiian-language","tag-kennedy-theatre","tag-theatre","tag-theatre-and-dance","tag-uh-manoa","entry","has-media"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/manoa-call-thatre-lele-wale-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/229107","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=229107"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/229107\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":229125,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/229107\/revisions\/229125"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/229110"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=229107"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=229107"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=229107"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}