Polynesians Win Hearts in China

A group of performers from the Church’s Polynesian Cultural Center in Laie, Hawaii, won wide acceptance as they performed at the First China International Folk Art Festival during August 1989.

The twenty-five dancers, singers, and support personnel spent three weeks in China. They performed at the festival in Beijing for the first week, then traveled to other areas to perform, and then returned to Beijing for a final show.

Their music and dance numbers represented Hawaiian, Tongan, Samoan, Fijian, Maori, and Tahitian cultures. Schedulers for the folk festival performances soon found that the PCC group was the highlight of the show, so the group was consistently scheduled to perform last.

In addition to thousands of Chinese who saw them perform in person, there was a potential audience of millions for the group’s videotape when it was broadcast on national television.