Lūʻau-format Polynesian programs led by Kumu Hula Iolana Kahalehoe. Hilo-based hālau, three decades of weekly lūʻau and family events.
Hālau o Mauliola was founded in Hilo in 1995 by Kumu Hula Iolana Kahalehoe. We perform what people call 'lūʻau-format' programs — narrated sets of hula, oli, and music spanning the Polynesian Triangle (Hawaiʻi, Tahiti, Sāmoa, Aotearoa) — with the cultural integrity of a hālau, not the choreography of a tourist revue.
We've been the closing performance of one of Hilo Bay's resort lūʻau every Friday since 2007, and we've performed at hundreds of family events — weddings, milestone birthdays, retirement parties — across all the islands. The hālau is forty deep; we travel with eight to twenty performers depending on the booking, plus live musicians.
Pricing reflects headcount and program length. We won't compress a thirty-minute cultural program to fit a fifteen-minute slot — we'll suggest a different program built for fifteen minutes. We've turned down work that would've meant compromising what we teach.
Kalei & Andre M. · Hilo
We had Hālau o Mauliola perform the lūʻau program at our reception at the ʻImiloa grounds. Kumu Iolana wrote a custom oli for my husband's family — naming his grandmother's home in Pāhoa. My mother-in-law didn't stop crying for ten minutes. Worth every dollar and then some.
Resort F&B director · Hilo Bay
We've worked with Hālau o Mauliola as our Friday-evening lūʻau performance for nine years. The cultural integrity is what sets them apart — guests routinely mention the difference vs. other lūʻau they've attended. Kumu Iolana and her hālau are the standard.
Marcus & Tara P. · Volcano
Booked Hālau o Mauliola for my dad's 60th in Volcano. Twelve performers traveled up from Hilo, set up in our backyard, performed a 45-minute program. Magical. Three months later my dad still talks about it.
These are starting packages. Most vendors will customize for your date, headcount, and the kind of party you're throwing — ask.
15 minutes
Six dancers, three live musicians, hula + Tahitian set built for wedding receptions. Arrives an hour early for staging and sound check.
45 minutes
Twelve dancers, narrated cultural program traversing the Polynesian Triangle, live musicians. Most-booked package.
75 minutes
Twenty performers, narrated evening program, drum corps, fire knife closer (siva afi via partner troupe). For corporate retreats and major lūʻau.
Booked dates are pulled from the vendor's own calendar. If your date is open, you can request a quote — they'll confirm in their reply. Most events lock in 2–6 months ahead in Hawaiʻi; for May–August dates, sooner is safer.
Hilo-based wedding and portrait photography. Quieter galleries than what mainland photographers tend to make on this island.
Younger-generation Polynesian performance — contemporary choreography rooted in tradition. Built for events that want energy, not a museum piece.
Riverfront garden venue along the Wailuku River. Heritage trees, tented lawn, indoor backup for the Hilo rain.