Most of the time, Linda Fruyzan is a Palatine homemaker. But about 60 times a year, she changes her name, dons a grass skirt and hula dances.
Fruyzan, whose stage name is Kaolani (Hawaiian for ”white heavens”), will perform at North School Park in Arlington Heights Sunday afternoon with the Aloha Dancers, a troupe she founded with her husband, George.
Fruyzan became intrigued with Hawaiian dancing in 1972.
”I had been taking hula dance lessons for my own enjoyment in Chicago,” she said. ”There were some professional dancers in the class, and when they found out I could sew, they started having me make costumes for them, so I got more and more involved with the world of hula dancing.”
Five years later she married George, and the couple began visiting Hawaii every April for the annual International Hula Competition.
”We made friends with some of the hula teachers,” she said. ”They knew all about the ancient chants that accompany the hula dances, and we`d spend an afternooon talking to them, recording our conversations, then go back to our hotel room and transcribe what they had said.”
Fruyzan learned that the hula originally functioned as a way of passing on cultural information, she said.
”The Hawaiians originally didn`t have a written language, so instead of books, their history, genealogy, religion was communicated through the art of the hula.”
Traditional hula stories concentrate on battle, royalty and the gods of Hawaii`s ancient religion. ”The old chants often have both a literal translation and a poetic translation. For example, one song said King Kalakaua went for a walk and smelled the flowers; the poetic meaning is that he was making love to the queen,” Fruyzan said.
The Fruyzans started their own company in 1977, with performances at neighbors` back-yard barbecues. Today, the Aloha Dancers perform about five concerts each month at corporate events and park district festivals.
Fruyzan said her husband`s involvement, until recently, was limited to handling business arrangements for the company. ”George doesn`t dance, but I finally got him to do one couples dance in the act,” she said. ”It took me 15 years to talk him into it.”
The Aloha Dancers, which feature four dancers and four musicians, begin their concert at 2 p.m. at North School Park, Arlington Heights Road and Eastman Street, Arlington Heights. In case of rain, the performance will take place at the Administration Center, 410 Arlington Heights Rd. Call 708-577-3000.
