Robert Cazimero Performs at the Downey Theatre This Month

 The second concert from Hawaiian Island Creations (HIC) Lifestyle’s Aloha Everywhere Concert Series taking place at the Downey Theatre, features Composer, Musician and Kumu Hula Robert Cazimero with a captivating afternoon of music and hula on Sunday, January 28, 2024, at 3 p.m. Joining Cazimero on stage will be his Hālau Nā Kamalei o Līlīlehua and Special Guest Kumu Hula Maelia Loebenstein Carter. 

Robert Uluwehi Cazimero’s half-century of contributions as a musician, composer and kumu hula leave no doubt that he is an indelible influencer of Hawaiian culture. From his early days with the musical group the Sunday Manoa, to recordings with his late brother, Roland as the Brothers Cazimero, and as a solo artist, he has received 25 Nā Hōkū Hanohano awards, a Grammy Nomination and was inducted into the Hawaiian Music Hall of Fame in 2006. In 2008, the Hawai‘i Academy of Recording Artists presented the Brothers Cazimero a Lifetime Achievement Award. In this same year, Robert was singularly distinguished as a USA Fellow for his work and achievements as a Composer, Musician and Kumu Hula.

Cazimero studied with the renowned Kumu Hula Maiki Aiu Lake and became a kumu hula in 1973. He brought Lake’s vision of an all-male hālau to fruition with the formation of Hālau Nā Kamalei o Līlīlehua and to date, has graduated three classes of kumu hula, chanters and advanced hula dancers.

Beyond his many accolades and awards, he is most proud of his students, who perpetuate Hawaiian culture not only through hula and music, but through education, healing, preservation and community service. In these ways, he continues the lineage passed on to him from his Kumu.

Hālau Nā Kamalei o Līlīlehua was founded on Kamehameha Day, June 11, 1975, by Kumu Hula Robert Uluwehi Cazimero. The hālau was named by Kumu Hula Maiki Aiu Lake, Robert’s mentor and constant influence in hula and all things Hawaiian. Aunty Maiki encouraged Robert to begin teaching two years after his own ‘ūniki as kumu and advised that he should teach men exclusively to help rejuvenate hula kāne. Five decades later, Kumu Hula Robert Uluwehi Cazimero and Hālau Nā Kamalei O Līlīlehua continue to nurture and cultivate the powerful, revered Hawaiian legacy of hula entrusted to them by our kūpuna.

Kumu Hula Maelia Loebenstein Carter started dancing hula from the age of three for her adoptive grandmother Mae Ulalia Long Loebenstein. As a seventh generation kumu hula, she is responsible for carrying on her grandmotherʻs legacy, conveying a worldview encoded in the dances lyrics and gestures with a reverence and appreciation for the physical world, unseen forces and her cultureʻs shared stories. 

“I’m truly excited to be a part of the Aloha Everywhere Concert Series this year at the Downey Theater,” exclaims Cazimero. “Come, spend the afternoon with me as I take the stage, entertaining family and friends, bringing everyone home for a moment or two seems a fitting way to start the new year. Let us sing and dance, rekindle sweet memories together of our Hawai`i, for this one incredible moment, Aloha!”

The remaining line-up in the Aloha Everywhere Concert Series include The Dennis Kamakahi Music Festival, featuring David Kamakahi, Kawika Kahiapo, Patrick Landeza, Jon Yamasato, Hosted by Brook Mahealani Lee on Sunday, April 7, 2024 at 3 p.m.; and Mark Yamanaka, Kūpaoa & Hoku Zuttermeister on Saturday, May 18, 2023 at 7 p.m. Aloha Everywhere Concert Series individual and subscription tickets for all four concert are available at https://www.downeytheatre.org/.

The Aloha Everywhere Concert Series, presented by Hawaiian Island Creations (HIC) Lifestyle, started as a small surf shop on Oahu’s Windward shore. Through a commitment to quality, service and aloha spirit, the brand has built a reputation as an icon of Hawaiian surfing recognized throughout the world. The retail chain has grown to include seventeen stores across three islands, providing authentic Hawaiian surf gear to both locals and visitors alike and they subsequently branched out into the world of presenting Hawaiian music’s top artists, bringing excellent music, cultivating community, and nurturing culture by spreading aloha everywhere.

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