The Mahea Uchiyama Center for International Dance / Hālau Ka Ua Tuahine will present a rare form of hula not widely practiced today. Hula kiʻi features the use of carved or crafted images in the story telling and movements of hula. Due to Western influences in the 19th Century, the hula kiʻi and other indigenous traditions were suppressed almost out of existence. Kumu Hula Māhealani Uchiyama of Hālau Ka Ua Tuahine, in association with Kumu Hula Kiʻi Mauli Ola Cook (holder of the lineal tradition of Kumu Nona Beamer and Kauaʻi alakaʻi of Kumu Hula Victoria Holt Takamine), Kumu Hula Maile Loo-Ching who leads the non-profit Hula Preservation Society, and Kumu Hula Auliʻi Mitchell of Hālau ʻo Kahiwahiwa who is an expert in carved forms and kiʻi innovation, will present this unique art form in San Francisco through a project sponsored by the 2021 Gerbode Foundation Choreography Award and 2024 Touring Grants from the Gerbode Foundation and the Zellerbach Family Fund. The project encompasses the research of classical themes, the construction of hula puppets, and the development of a dedicated hula ki’i practice within the Berkeley-based hālau. The resultant performance is Wai Ola, ʻAukele and the Waters of Life, A Celebration of Hula Kiʻi.