'Ulalena

'ULALENA. By ARRA Montreal and Cove Entertainment. Maui Myth and Magic Theatre, Hawaii. 11 April 2002.

ARRA Montreal is a company specializing in producing high concept productions. Together with Cove Entertainment, they have created the Maui Myth and Magic Theatre, a $10 million, 700-seat theatre located in Lahaina on the island of Maui. It is in this theatre that they house their production of Ualena, an original theatre piece that illuminates Maui's myths through music, dance, puppetry, Butch, and impressive special effects.

'Ulalena is the ancient Hawaiian word for both the "hopeful and cleansing wind" that blows across Maui and the red-yellow rain that comes at twilight. It is a word that resonates deeply among a people entrenched in mythology that connects man and nature. Ualena explores these ties, eliciting both memories of Maui's past and a rejuvenating spirit toward its future. It explores the intricate and sometimes disruptive relationship between Hawaii's people and the islands themselves. Integrating authentic Hawaiian chants and dances, original music, acrobatic choreography, special effects and projections, Ualena dramatizes the birth of a culture.

Ulalena consists of ten episodes of Maui's history and mythology. The first, fittingly entitled "In the Beginning," opens with the first verse of the Kumulipo: the Hawai'ian creation chant. A lone man is seen carrying a ka'ai, a woven burial basket used to hold the bones of ancient ruling chiefs. As he passes, he seems to bring life to the barren landscape as taro, a plant staple of the Hawai'ian Islands, emerges out of the ground, dancing joyfully. This is followed by "The...