Todd Kobashigawa first took up drumming after following a cousin to practice. He thought they would be practicing shishi mai, a traditional Japanese dance performed in a lion costume, but instead it was eisa, or Okinawan drumming.
“It's funny because I didn't know what eisa was at that time,” he said. “Then, I saw the practice and just seeing them during practice — being silly, laughing, joking around while dancing and weaving through each other [and] doing a spin jump — was amazing.”
Today, Kobashigawa is the president of Chinagu Eisa Hawaiʻi, a drumming group which will take the stage at 1:40 p.m. on Saturday, March 8, for a 15-minute performance on the main stage at the Hawaiʻi Convention Center, as part of the Honolulu Festival, which runs Friday, March 7, through Sunday, March 9. The club is one of many performance groups that will take the stage at the Hawaiʻi Convention Center, Ala Moana Centerstage or Waikīkī Beach Walk this weekend.
“We love to perform at festivals like this to help promote the Okinawan culture here in Hawaiʻi,” Kobashigawa said.
This will be Chinagu Eisa Hawaiʻi’s eleventh performance at the Honolulu Festival, he added. Club members range in age from four years old to more than 80 years old.
“We have little kids and their grandparents performing together on stage,” Kobashigawa said.
So are brothers and sisters, as well as mothers and daughters, he added. Chinagu Eisa Hawaiʻi practices at least four hours each week. Sometimes, they practice up to 12 hours a week, leading up to festivals or concerts, he added.
“Our club's name, Chinago, means bonds,” Kobashigawa said. “When you watch us perform, you can see the bonds we've made with each other as performers over many hours of practice. And then we like to think we make some bonds and connections with you, the audience, in these moments of beautiful song and dance.”
This year, the Honolulu Festival Foundation will charge admission for access to the first floor of the Hawaiʻi Convention Center for the first time, as previously reported by Aloha State Daily. That space includes the festival’s art market, craft fair, food bazaar and musical performances. Admission is $8 for adults and $6 for seniors. Reduced rates are available for two-day admission. The grand parade starts at 4 p.m. and proceeds down Kalakaua Avenue in Waikiki, followed by fireworks at 8:30 p.m. on Sunday. Buy tickets.
