MotivAsians for Cleveland is a non-profit organization established to cultivate a vibrant Asian community for Greater Cleveland by promoting the attraction and retention of Asian-American professionals. They hosted their first Taste of Asia gala banquet in the Dolan center of John Carroll University on Saturday November 2, 2024. The evening included Asian food, entertainment, cultural performances, silent auction and more including Polynesian dances from Pacific Paradise Entertainment.
Pacific Paradise Entertainment Dance
Watch a video of the first two dances from Pacific Paradise Entertainment.
The next dance emphasized the hip movement to the drum beat. Watch.
For the final dance they called up volunteers from the audience who put on grass skirts. Then they taught the basic moves by calling out 4 fruits: mango, coconut, pineapple and banana. Then a smoothie to mix them all together.
Audience Participation Polynesian Dance by Pacific Paradise
The 2024 Cleveland Asian Festival was a rousing success. Almost 50,000 people attended the annual 2 day festival that included performances, food, cultural displays, health screenings, games, kids and family activities and more.
Asia Plaza roof shot of crowd at Cleveland Asian Festival
There were traditional and modern performances on two stages. There was something for everyone. Younger people really liked the Asian Pop Dance Competition. Plenty of martial arts on the second stage. And so on.
The Cleveland Cultural Gardens Federation presented a series of World on Stage events during the summer of 2023 at the Centennial Peace Plaza in the Gardens. The September 9, 2023 event celebrated Asian heritage and culture. Pacific Paradise Entertainment performed Polynesian dances from Hawaii, New Zealand, Samoa and Tahiti.
Pacific Paradise Entertainment is a group of friends and family who love to showcase the Polynesian culture through Hula, Tahitian and Polynesian dancing. They performed in varios Cultural Gardens (Syrian, Czech, Serbian, etc.) on One Wolrd Day on August 28, 2022.
Pacific Paradise dancers in front of Syrian Garden
Pacific Paradise Entertainment at Cleveland Asian Festival
Pacific Paradise Entertainment is a group of friends and family who love to showcase the Polynesian culture through Hula, Tahitian and Polynesian dancing. They performed at the 2022 Cleveland Asian Festival.
Pacific Paradise Entertainment at Cleveland Asian Festival
Watch the video of a song that uses sticks on the ground to keep the beat.
Cleveland Asian Festival 2022
The annual Cleveland Asian Festival was back live after being virtual during Covid and over 30,000 people came to AsiaTown to enjoy it.
The Cleveland Asian Festival (CAF) is a grassroots festival that highlights Cleveland's AsiaTown, Diversity, and Asian Culture in Northeast Ohio. It was organized in 2010 by volunteer community leaders to celebrate Cleveland's diversity and Asian Pacific American Heritage month (May).
The mission of CAF has remained the same over the years:
Strengthening the identity of AsiaTown and supporting its economic growth
Educating and promoting Asian culture and traditions
Celebrating Asian Pacific American Heritage Month and Cleveland's Diversity
The 10th annual Cleveland Asian Festival was held on the weekend of May 18 and 19 in Cleveland's AsiaTown neighborhood on Payne Avenue. It has become a not-to-miss annual event with great entertainment, food, shopping and fun.
The 2018 Cleveland Asian Festival was another huge success. The 9th annual Cleveland Asian Festival was held on the weekend of May 19 and 20 in Cleveland's AsiaTown neighborhood on Payne Avenue. It has become a not-to-miss annual event with great entertainment, food, shopping and fun.
Fashions from Polynesian Islands at Cleveland multicultural party
A highlight of the 8th Annual ICC-WIN Cleveland Multicultural Holiday Celebration on Wednesday, December 6, 2017 at the Global Center for Health Innovation in Cleveland was the International Fashion Show featuring almost 100 models from about 30 countries.
Gideon Lorete and Phola Sade Adu represented the Polynesian Islands. The Polynesians are the original inhabitants of a vast string of islands in the Pacific Ocean, from New Zealand in the south to Hawaii in the north. The cultures of the region share many traits with each other. Their differences are often subtle and not readily perceived by outsiders.
Mana from Hula Fusion gave a taste of Polynesia at the 8th Annual ICC-WIN Cleveland Multicultural Holiday Celebration. Mana is from the Island of Saipan and performed a Hawaiian war dance.
Mana from Hula Fusion
Next was the Tewe Tewe dance.
The grand finale was a New Zealand dance with poi balls that Mana calls Electric Poi.
International students from around the world who are attending school in Cleveland attended InterCLE 2017, a grand welcome for international students hosted by Global Cleveland and Friends of Global Cleveland a new, international young professionals group and with the support of the City of Cleveland. Hula Fusion performed for the 400 attendees.
Hula Fusion performed at the 8th annual Cleveland Asian Festival. Their grand finale was a fire dance and then a hula.
2016
Hula Fusion Polynesian Ensemble
One of the highlights of the 7th annual Cleveland Multicultural Holiday Celebration put on by the International Community Council Worldwide Intercultural Network (ICC-WIN) in Cleveland at the Global Center for Health Innovation was the performance of the Hula Fusion Polynesian Ensemble.
A highlight of the 7th annual Holiday Celebration of Cleveland's Diversity held in the atrium of the Global Center for Health Innovation in the Cleveland Convention Center by the International Community Council-Worldwide Intercultural Network (ICC-WIN) was the multicultural fashion show.
A highlight of the 6th annual Holiday Celebration of Cleveland's Diversity held in the atrium of the Global Center for Health Innovation in the Cleveland Convention Center by the International Community Council-Worldwide Intercultural Network (ICC-WIN) was the multicultural fashion show.
A classic part of Hawaii's wardrobe having similar patterns and colors are the Muumuu and Aloha shirt representing the traditional wear of men and women of Hawaii as both pieces are descendants from the missionary design to which was forced upon the native people. The best quality of shirts and muumuus are made of natural cotton and silk imprinting the beautiful feature of floral patterns native to Hawaii. The haku and lei are key pieces too.
Hula Fusion Pacific Islands dancers at Cleveland One World Day
Hula Fusion, under the direction of Audrey Godoy, performed dances from the Pacific Islands at the 70th annual One World Day in the Cleveland Cultural Gardens. Their performance was part of the annual Cleveland International Folk Festival and this is the ending part.
The 4th annual Cleveland Asian Festival attracted 38,380 attendees over the weekend of May 18-19, 2013. They spent over $2 million in the AsiaTown neighborhood. There were dozens of performances from local, regional, and national performing groups including headliner Cheesa from NBC's The Voice.
People enjoyed Asian cuisine from over 20 different restaurants and shopping in the World Market which was filled with merchants of Asian themed products while sponsors had informational displays at their tent.
Report on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders
Asian Services In Action, Inc. (ASIA), in partnership with APIAVote, presented key findings from A Community of Contrasts: Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders in the Midwest, 2012 on October 29, 2012 at the Ariel International Center in Cleveland.
Marita Etcubanez, Director of Programs, Asian American Justice Center
The Ohana Aloha Polynesian Dancers performed traditional Hawaiian Island dances at the ClevelandPeople.Com International Pavilion at Ohio's Celtic and International Festival in September 2012.
Organizations and Resources for Pacific Islanders in Cleveland
According to Wikipedia, the Pacific Ocean contains an estimated 20,000 to 30,000 islands (the exact number has yet to be precisely determined). Those islands lying south of the tropic of Cancer but excluding Australia are traditionally grouped into three divisions: Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Inhabitants are sometimes referred to as Pacific Islanders.
Melanesia means black islands. These include New Guinea (the largest Pacific island, which is divided into the sovereign nation of Papua New Guinea and the Indonesian provinces of Maluku, Papua and West Papua), New Caledonia, Zenadh Kes (Torres Strait Islands),Vanuatu, Fiji, and the Solomon Islands.
Micronesia means small islands. These include the Marianas, Guam, Wake Island, Palau, the Marshall Islands, Kiribati, Nauru, and the Federated States of Micronesia. Most of these lie north of the equator.
Polynesia means many islands. These include New Zealand, the Hawaiian Islands, Rotuma, the Midway Islands, Samoa, American Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, the Cook Islands, French Polynesia, and Easter Island. It is the largest of the three zones.
In 1979 the Federated States of Micronesia, a UN Trust Territory under US administration, adopted a constitution. In 1986 independence was attained under a Compact of Free Association with the US, which was amended and renewed in 2004.
Present concerns include large-scale unemployment, overfishing, and overdependence on US aid.
The French annexed various Polynesian island groups during the 19th century. In September 1995, France stirred up widespread protests by resuming nuclear testing on the Mururoa atoll after a three-year moratorium. The tests were suspended in January 1996.
In recent years, French Polynesia's autonomy has been considerably expanded.
If you are interested in being considered to be an official ClevelandPeople.com Ambassador to the Cleveland Pacific Islander community, please contact us.
