Advertisement - Click to support our sponsors.
DRESSED in a bright pink and lime green chiffon-layered costume called a hanbok, dance student Kyung Hee Hinazumi studies her form in front of the studio's wall-sized mirror.
Members ages 6 to 65 celebrate
the 50th anniversary of Halla Pai
Huhm Korean dance studioBy Rosemarie Bernardo
Star-BulletinWith a drumstick in her left hand, Hinazumi slowly beats against the face of a changgo, an hourglass-shaped drum, simultaneously taking graceful steps to the left and to the right.
"I would do my best to make the 50th anniversary special," said Hinazumi.
Determined to perform well, North Shore resident Hinazumi drives to the Halla Pai Huhm King Street studio twice a week to prepare for the school's anniversary performances Aug. 19 and 20 at Mamiya Theatre. About 60 studio members -- ranging in age from 6 to 65 -- are practicing for the milestone event.
Back in Seoul, Korea, when she was 11 years old, Hinazumi wanted to take dance classes. But coming from a poor family, she said the cost of taking classes was prohibitive.
ON STAGE
What: 50th anniversary of Halla Pai Huhm Korean Dance Studio
Now, Hinazumi, 46, retired and financially stable, has the means to take Korean folk dance classes, and considers it honorable that the school has managed to pass on the tradition for so long.
It's very honorable that the studio has existed for many years in Hawaii, said Hinazumi, who's been studying folk dance for two years.
Choreography of the late Halla Huhm will be featured throughout the show. She was a charismatic woman, said Mary Jo Freshley of Huhm. "She was very interested in educating people."
Born in Pusan, Korea, in 1922, Huhm was taught by her cousin, Pai Ku-ja, who studied ballet and modern dance in Europe.
In 1949, Huhm immigrated to Hawaii, opening up a dance studio a year later. She also taught dance at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa and graced Hawaii's stages a number of times. Huhm died in January 1994.
Freshley, director of the studio, said she didn't expect to be teaching Korean folk dance when she arrived in Hawaii in 1961. Originally from Ohio, she taught health and physical education at Kamehameha Schools in 1962. That summer, she also began taking dance classes from Halla Huhm at UH while also learning Japanese and Filipino dances.
"I enjoy learning about cultures through dance," said Freshley. Most recently, she was able to compile a collection of newspaper articles and photos of their performances from 1950 to 1997.
She began assisting Huhm at the studio in 1973. "She was a very lovely dancer," said Freshley of Huhm. "She was constantly learning herself."
Through Huhm's teachings of Korean folk dancing, many second- and third-generation Koreans learned respect, etiquette and pride for their ethnic heritage."This is an educational institution where we try to help people bridge the gap between their original place of birth and to also help the succeeding generations who are surrounded by American culture to gain an appreciation for their own identity," said Freshley. A majority of the school's students are children of immigrant parents.
Hira Pyun, who began taking classes when she was 15, encouraged her daughter, Alyssa to participate in Korean folk dance. "I want my girl to know her background, not forget," said Hira, now 39, and originally from Seoul.
"I enjoy it because I think it's interesting to learn new things and what my mom learned, and how dancing was in the old days," said Alyssa, a sixth grader at Kahala Elementary. "It would be kind of odd if I didn't know about my culture."
Dance student Jennifer Cho decided to study Korean dance due to the influence of her cousin, Angela. "It teaches me things that I normally wouldn't have learned, a lot of the history," said Cho, 25, a third-generation Korean.
"For any kind of folk art to last this long with so many people interested, to me it's kind of amazing," she said.
Cho, who studied modern dance while attending Pacific University in Oregon, said Korean dance involves subtle movements with the neck, knees and wrists.
"It's more understated, under your breath kind of movements," Cho said. "It's supposed to be kind of a lingering movement."
Although the leaping and jazz-styled movements involved in modern dance are strenuous, Cho said Korean dancers require an equal amount of strength to support their arms and the bending of their bodies, even though the movement seems effortless.
"The movements are quite unique," she said. "You don't see a lot of movements in Korean dance elsewhere," Cho said.
Beyond her interest in the aesthetics, charm and history of Korean dances, Cho said, "I do it because I like the comraderie. Not only are there Korean people in our studio, but people of other races," she said. "It's nice to see their interest in the Korean culture."
Freshley said it was always Huhm's goal to teach people more about Korean culture. For the younger generation who attend the dance studio, Freshley said, "I'm hoping they have some sense of pride with the culture itself, a little sense of history of what has been done in our studio for years.
Click for online
calendars and events.
