Dancing Across Oceans:
Asia Pacific Dance Festival Unites Art, Culture, and Students
One of UH Mānoa Outreach College’s flagship programs, the Asia Pacific Dance Festival (APDF), returned this summer to the Mānoa campus for its biennial celebration of artistic excellence, intercultural dialogue, and community engagement. Over the course of two weeks, from May 19 to June 1, world-class artists, students, and community members convened for an immersive exploration of dance traditions from across Asia, the Pacific, and Hawai‘i. A hallmark of this year’s festival was the active engagement of four undergraduate students, whose roles were supported through a UROP Mentoring Grant.
Festival Director and Mentoring Grant recipient SheenRu Yong explained, “APDF…brings together the finest dances and dancers from across the Asia-Pacific region to share their talent and stories on one stage. For our community and students here, it serves as a unique opportunity to study intensively and engage with cultures they might not otherwise and for visiting students to be immersed in Hawaiʻi’s host culture.”
The scope and impact of APDF are reflected not only in the hundreds of participants it draws but also in the visibility it receives beyond campus. This year’s festival was highlighted in a UH Communications Media Advisory, covered by Hawai‘i Public Radio, and featured in multiple broadcast segments including HI Now Daily, Hawai‘i News Now Sunrise, and KITV4. Coverage in the Honolulu Star-Advertiser further underscored APDF’s role as both a cornerstone of Hawai‘i’s cultural landscape and a platform of international visibility.
2025 Program
The 2025 festival featured diverse programming, including master classes, public workshops, live theater performances, and an academic conference, each designed to foster understanding of the cultural and historical contexts of the featured dance forms.
| Event Title & Date | Description |
|---|---|
| APDF Intensive Monday, May 19 – Sunday, June 1 | Learn about different cultures through movement from our Resident Artists University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa campus |
| Living the Art of Hula, featuring Hālau Kilipohe Nā Lei Lehua [Performance]
Thursday, May 22 | A full-length evening concert featuring Hālau Kilipohe Nā Lei Lehua, the resident hula hālau of APDF 2022. |
| Talk Story with APDF 2025 Resident Artists Friday, May 23 | Come meet our APDF 2025 Resident Artists! This talk story will feature demonstrations and discussions from our esteemed artistic directors and their performers. Waiʻanae Public Library |
| Local Motion!: A Tribute to H. Wayne Mendoza [Performance] & Film Screening Sunday, May 25 | Local Motion!: A Tribute to H. Wayne Mendoza [Performance]: A Filipino dance concert honoring the legacy of the late H. Wayne Mendoza, performed by his apprentices. Featuring the Philippine Cultural Group of Hawaiʻi, La Galería Compañia Baile Filipino, and Mendoza Philippine Dance Group. Film Screening: A screening of films by each of our three resident artist groups. |
| APDF Conference Keynote Address & Welcoming Ceremony Friday, May 30 | APDF Conference Keynote Address: Kicking off the ADPF conference, a Keynote Address by Gish awardee and activist Kumu Hula Vicky Holt Takamine in conversation with Kumu Hula Michael Pili Pang. Welcoming Ceremony: A formal welcome of our resident artists to the festival ahead of the APDF Conference and the two ‘Ike Hana performances. |
| APDF Conference, ‘Talk Story’ with the invited Resident Dance Groups and Artists, & ‘Ike Hana I, featuring works from all Resident Groups and Artists [Performance]
Saturday, May 31 | ‘Ike Hana I, featuring works from all Resident Groups and Artists: Each ‘Ike Hana features a completely different program! See each of our resident groups on both days. Attend both concerts for the full experience! |
| APDF Conference, ‘Ike Hana II, featuring works from all Resident Groups and Artists [Performance], & ‘Talk Story’ with the invited Resident Dance Groups and Artists Sunday, June 1 | ‘Ike Hana II, featuring works from all Resident Groups and Artists [Performance]: Each ‘Ike Hana features a completely different program! See each of our resident groups on both days. Attend both concerts for the full experience! |
Three distinguished performance groups: Hula Hālau Pua Ali‘i ‘Ilima (Hawai‘i), renowned for preserving and innovating traditional hula under the direction of Kumu Hula Victoria Holt Takamine; Arzoo Dance Theatre (Canada/India), known for blending classical Kathak dance with contemporary narratives to explore social themes; and RAKO Pasefika (Rotuma, Fiji), a company dedicated to revitalizing and sharing the music, movement, and oral traditions of Rotuman culture. Together, these groups offered audiences a vibrant mix of performance styles, from the percussive rhythms of Kathak footwork to the fluid storytelling of hula and the dynamic communal dances of the Pacific.
Integral Student Participation
Yong and Festival Co-Director Michelle Huynh sought support for APDF by applying for UROP’s Mentoring Grant, the funding from which allowed them to recruit four students to conduct creative work in areas that overlapped with festival operations.
“We applied for the Mentoring Grant to create unique, hands-on experiences for undergraduates to work in live arts production, which is something that is difficult to replicate in a classroom,” said Huynh. “Opportunities like this are scarce—not just because of their scale, but because they’re usually unpaid for student workers. Our vision was to embed students in roles that allowed them to engage with as many layers of production as possible, which happens both on- and off-stage.”
Undergraduates Timothy Lum (Computer Science major), Lillie Brewer (Dance Theater major), and Badger Taggart (Korean major) contributed to the staging of four distinct productions, assisting with technical preparation in lighting, sound, and set design while coordinating real-time production needs. Their work provided direct insight into the complex interplay between creative vision and logistical execution in large-scale cultural events.
“My role [as Artist Liaison] was all about connection and support,” said Lum. “I worked closely with the production manager to ensure the resident artists had everything they needed, from transportation and directions to production logistics and hospitality. It sharpened my problem-solving and time management skills, and made me realize how powerful the performing arts can be in bringing people together and creating shared experiences.”
“For this year’s APDF, I filled dual roles as an Artist Liaison and Stagehand,” said Taggart. “It was a short but intense and emotionally impactful time, and I was fortunate to experience APDF from both the intensive and performance side of things. Performing arts creates spaces where cultural exchange, community building, positive social interaction, and education can all overlap.”
Sarah Ward (Creative Media major) served as the festival’s lead documentary film maker, recording rehearsals, performances, community events, and artist interviews. Following the festival, she compiled the footage into a short documentary capturing both the artistry and behind-the-scenes efforts that brought the two-week program to life.
“As the documentarian, my role was to capture the energy, artistry, and cultural significance of the festival,” Ward said. “One of the most meaningful parts of shooting the documentary was witnessing and capturing the raw and personal moments behind the performances.” She added, “Documenting such monumental events remains a fundamental way of preserving knowledge and strengthening communal ties.”
These positions not only enhanced the students’ technical and creative expertise but also deepened their understanding of how performing arts initiatives can shape academic discourse and community connections.
Navigating Funding Challenges
In the weeks leading up to open night, APDF faced the sudden loss of $25,000 in funding from the National Endowment for the Arts. “This was a significant setback, especially because the funds were intended to support artist fees, production needs, and labor costs,” said Huynh. “Cancelling the festival was never an option, so we pivoted to make rapid adjustments and scale back certain elements while still maintaining our core commitments to our artists, audiences, supporters, and students.”
Through adaptive planning, community rallying, and the support of the student team, the festival was able to maintain its planned programming. The UROP Mentoring Grant played a pivotal role in enabling these adjustments while preserving the event’s educational mission. “From documenting the festival to managing backstage operations to assisting the teaching artists, our student team helped carry the festival forward. The fact that we were able to pay our students and acquire professional-grade equipment amid financial uncertainty speaks to how crucial this funding really was—not just for mentorship, but for the operational resilience of the festival itself,” added Huynh.
A Continuing Legacy
By its conclusion, the 2025 Asia Pacific Dance Festival had reaffirmed its role as a platform for cultural exchange, artistic innovation, and student development. Despite financial and logistical hurdles, APDF delivered a robust program that bridged performance and scholarship, reinforcing the capacity of the arts to foster empathy, dialogue, and mutual understanding.
“Being part of this festival helped me see the performing arts as a way to spark interest, celebrate culture, and make learning feel more human and connected,” said Lum. Ward noted that the performances “sparked meaningful conversation, cultural exchange, and community building,” while Taggart reflected that APDF “positively changes people’s lives” by bringing together individuals in a shared, transformative space.
Together, the students emphasized that the skills and insights they gained will carry forward into their academic, professional, and creative endeavors, shaping not only how they view the arts, but how they see themselves as future contributors to cultural dialogue and community engagement.
With its commitment to excellence and resilience in the face of adversity, the APDF continues to serve as a model for how universities can bring global traditions to local stages while cultivating the next generation of arts leaders.