2015 Spring Lu`au Pacific Island Food, Dance, and Music
Everyone is invited to the dinner and show Saturday, April 11, from 5 p.m. on
TACOMA, Wash. – For the 45th year University of Puget Sound students are bringing the warmth, rhythm, and beauty of Polynesia to Tacoma, with an invitation to the 2015 Spring Lu`au.
The Saturday, April 11 event will include a Hawaiian dinner and an internationally inspired stage show, with traditional dances from Pacific Ocean cultures. The university’s Spring Lu`au is one of the biggest celebrations of Polynesian culture in the state, attracting nearly 1,000 people each year.
Dinner will be served from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. in the newly renovated upstairs area of Wheelock Student Center, near the Alder Street entrance to campus. The stage show will begin at 8 p.m. in Memorial Fieldhouse, near the corner of Union Avenue and N. 11th Street. See below for ticket details and a map of campus.
The organizers, the university’s Hui O Hawai`i student club, have chosen the theme this year of Hali ̒a Aloha, or “cherished memories.” For more than four decades, Puget Sound students have shared the aloha spirit through song, dance, food, and story. Over those years Spring Lu`au has often narrated stories of Hawaiian gods and goddesses, representing perseverance, unity, and love. This year the Hali‘a Aloha theme encourages students and visitors alike to reminisce about family, friends, and experiences in Hawaii and on the campus of Puget Sound.
“We should remember and appreciate these cherished memories, as they have led us to where we are and who we’ve become,” said Shane Kiyota ’16, president of Hui O Hawai`i. “There is so much to enjoy in Polynesian culture, and we invite everyone to come for a magical evening.”
Music will be provided by Northwest Blend, a local group specializing in Hawaiian infused music, who include the use of four-part harmonies in their songs. The show will include numerous dances from cultures including Hawaiian, Tahitian, Samoan, and Maori, as well as ritual face-painting, grass skirts, the malo (loincloth), and colorful island dresses. The dinner will include kalua pig, shoyu chicken, lomi lomi salmon, macaroni salad, poi, chicken long rice, haupia, pineapple, and a vegan dish, pineapple stir fry.
Tickets are on sale now, and are available in advance or at the door.
When: Saturday, April 11, 2015
Where: Lu`au dinner: 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. in Wheelock Student Center, N. 15th Street and N. Alder Street
Lu`au show: 8 p.m. in Memorial Fieldhouse, N. 11th Street and Union Avenue
Tickets: General admission: Combo show and dinner: $24
Show only: $12
Dinner only: $16
Puget Sound campus members, seniors (65+), and those 17 and under:
Combo show and dinner: $17
Show only: $9
Dinner only: $12
Children 4 years old and under enter free.
Tickets can be ordered in advance and also will be available at the door.
To pay with a credit card call Wheelock Information Center at 253.879.3100.
(Monday–Thursday, 8 a.m.–10 p.m.; Friday, 8 a.m.–7 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m.–3 p.m.)
To order online go to: http://tickets.pugetsound.edu.
Tickets can be picked up on the day of the Lu`au from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the Information Center in Wheelock Student Center, or from 6:45 p.m. to 7:45 p.m. at the box office at Memorial Fieldhouse.
For more information: send an email to: luautix@pugetsound.edu.
For directions and a map of campus visit: pugetsound.edu/directions.