| Matsuri Event Scheduled |
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| Written by Administrator |
| Monday, 22 February 2010 16:54 |
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The 10th Annual Maui Matsuri, scheduled for May 14-15, honors Japanese cultural traditions with its annual theme of “Kodomo No Tame Ni (for the sake of the children).” Young and old alike will delight in this year’s offerings of art, entertainment, contests, crafts and food. A free Family Movie Night featuring "Only the Brave," directed by Lane Nishikawa, will be held on Friday, May 14, in the Maui Community College Student Center (Pilina Building). Nishikawa will be in attendance and will sign DVDs which will be available for sale. An anime film (film to be determined and announced in coming weeks) will be shown following "Only the Brave." The Matsuri festivities continue on Saturday, May 15, from 2 to 9 p.m. at the Maui Community College (MCC). The grassy knolls of the campus will be transformed into a bunkamura (Japanese village), dotted with stalls selling mouth watering goodies and a variety of crafts. The demonstration and entertainment stages will showcase the best of Maui County’s Japanese and Okinawan talent as well as traditional martial arts and eating contests. Contestants are also being sought for the saimin and natto eating contests, and the costume cosplay (costume play) contest. An inaugural hanafuda tournament is also scheduled. Keiki have a world of their own at the Kodomo Corner where tons of hands-on free craft activities such as origami and gyotaku (Japanese fish printing) will be available. Headliners include Frank Delima performing at 2:30 p.m., and Japanese superheroes Kikaida and his friends at 3:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. The festival ends with a community obon dance starting from 7:30 pm. The community is invited to wear a hapi coat or kimono and join in on the dancing. Admission to the festival and parking are free. Kay Fukumoto, Yuki Lei Sugimura, Tiffany Iida, and Lynn Araki-Regan said that, as co-chairs of the 10th Annual Maui Matsuri, their goal is to produce a Festival that grows more spectacular annually and expose the mainstream population to the diverse Japanese cultural arts and traditions. This year’s honorary chair is U.S. Senator Daniel Inouye. Presented by the Japanese Cultural Society of Maui, the 10th Annual Maui Matsuri's other sponsors include Hawaii Tourism Authority, County of Maui, Island Honda and Maui Taiko. An event to kick off this year's Maui Matsuri will be held on Friday, May 7, at 6:30 p.m. at Queen Kaahumanu Center. The kickoff event will include Japanese dancing, karaoke, a cosplay exhibition, and an obon dancing rehearsal. For more information on the Maui Matsuri, call the Matsuri Hotline at 283-9999. |
