Product Review

'Nona Beamer: A Legacy of Aloha' is a portrait of a remarkable Hawaiian dancer, teacher, and musician. As a child Nona ran headlong into the colonial influences that still suppressed the Hawaiian language and culture well into the 20th Century. Through stories, songs, and dances, from some of those whose lives were changed by Aunty Nona, a picture emerges of the crusader who, quietly and sweetly, helped reshape history and restore Hawaiian culture and dance. Featured in the film are Kaliko Beamer-Trapp, Hawaiian language teacher and Nona's hanai (adopted) son, Gordean Bailey, Kumu Hula (hula teacher) on Maui, Nathan Kalama, Kumu Hula, composer, and director of the Malie Foundation on Kaua'i, Puna Kalama Dawson, Kumu Hula on Kaua'i, David Kawika Eyre, Hawaiian language teacher at Kamehameha Schools on Oahu, Anakala Pilipo Solatorio, cultural practitioner on Moloka'I, Caren Loebel-Fried, artist and illustrator, Kaleo Trinidad, Kumu Hula at Kamehameha Schools, Oahu, Penny Vredenburg, Nona's cousin and host at Hawaiian events, Teri Waros, former manager of the Lodge at Molokai Ranch, and many others