Back by popular demand, Kealii Reichel will be performing at Kahilu Theatre for an intimate night of Hawaiian music on May 31.
Reichel is a renowned singer, songwriter, choreographer, dancer, chanter, scholar, teacher, and personality. His latest album, Kawaiokalena, which was released in fall 2014, has garnered widespread critical acclaim and has been nominated for 12 Hoku Hanohano Awards, including Album of the Year. Reichel has spent his life educating the world about Hawaiian culture through music and dance, and was inducted into the Hawaiian Music Hall of Fame in 2011.
Born and raised on Maui, Reichel grew up in Lahaina, spending weekends and summers at his grandmother’s house in Paia. His passion for the language and culture of Hawaii led him to become the founding director for Punana Leo O Maui, the Hawaiian language immersion school. He also founded his own hula school, Halau Kealaokamaile, in 1980 and has won numerous awards over the years. Reichel is also recognized as an accomplished chanter and retains his initial goal of presenting new compositions in the Hawaiian language for hula students, and works to dispel long-held stereotypes of Hawaii’s living culture and her indigenous people.
This concert, which is part of Kahilu Theatre’s 2014/2015 Hawaiian Music Series gets underway at 7 p.m., quickly sold out. The performance is made possible by sponsorship from John and Ann Broadbent, Rebecca Keliihoomalu, Kathryn Strahle, and the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel.