Aunty Ellen Gay’s “Graduation”

Dela Rosa ‘graduates’ after 43 years Ellen Gay Kekuaokalani Dela Rosa (shown at left), PCC’s long-time Theater Director, retired on her 65th birthday, August 5, 2016, after working for the Polynesian Cultural Center for 43 years. Several hundred co-workers, friends...

Teaching Hawaiian

Meet Nā’auao: Hawaiian language teacher, composer, chanter “I’ve always been interested in the Hawaiian language. I heard it growing up and knew vocabulary, but I didn’t really speak it. My grandfather, my dad’s dad, was a native speaker, but he passed away when I was...

2016 Launch of the Iosepa & other news

Update on the sailing canoe Iosepa:  The Iosepa launches from Hukilau Beach on June 15, 2016. Photo by Mark Holladay Lee The BYU–Hawaii/Polynesian Cultural Center 57-foot, single-masted wa’a kaulua or twin-hulled traditional Hawaiian sailing canoe Iosepa — which is...

Polynesian Royalty

We love our Polynesian royalty  Most people in modern Hawaii cherish the many reminders of our aloha state’s royal heritage. For example, we’re the only state graced by a royal palace — Iolani Palace in Honolulu; the Kamehameha Schools are the sole beneficiary of the...