Polynesian Cultural Center

The Polynesian Cultural Center is a nonprofit family-oriented cultural attraction and living museum in Laie, on the northern shore of Oahu, Hawaii. It presents selected traditions of Polynesia through reconstructed village environments, demonstrations, music, dance, canoe activities, food, theatrical productions, and special events. Rather than operating primarily as a conventional amusement park, the center combines tourism, cultural education, performance, and student employment. The attraction occupies approximately 42 acres of land associated with Brigham Young University–Hawaii. It is owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, while a large majority of its workforce consists of students from the nearby university. Students work limited hours during academic terms and more hours during school breaks. Revenue is used for operations and educational support, and the center has provided financial assistance to more than 12,000 BYU–Hawaii students since opening. The center's origins lie in community hukilau and luau gatherings held in Laie during the 1940s and 1950s. Those events helped raise money to rebuild a local church chapel damaged by fire and also established a connection between local hospitality, performance, and Polynesian cultural presentation. In early 1962, LDS Church president David O. McKay authorized construction of a nonprofit center intended both to preserve Polynesian culture and to create employment and scholarship opportunities for students. The Polynesian Cultural Center was dedicated on October 12, 1963. Its principal visitor experience is organized around simulated tropical villages and cultural areas representing different Polynesian societies. Performers and educators demonstrate arts, crafts, games, music, dance, navigation, cooking, and other practices. The program also includes a Rapa Nui exhibit, a tribute to the LDS mission in Hawaii during the nineteenth century, canoe experiences, a lagoon, and a luau featuring food such as pork prepared in an imu, or underground oven. Visitors may also take a shuttle tour connected with BYU–Hawaii and view the Laie Hawaii Temple and its visitors' center. Evening entertainment has been an important part of the center's identity. Hā–Breath of Life, introduced as the current evening production in the reference material, uses a large cast to combine songs and dances from across Polynesia, including hula, tamure, otea, titi torea, haka, poi, meke, tauʻolunga, and taualuga. Earlier productions included This Is Polynesia, Mana: The Spirit of Our People, and Horizons: Where the Sea Meets the Sky. The lagoon has also hosted canoe parades, including Huki: A Canoe Celebration, which premiered in 2018. The center has become one of Hawaii's most visited tourism destinations. Reference material describes annual attendance of about 700,000 visitors and cumulative attendance of more than 32 million since opening. It also hosts cultural festivals and competitions, including the World Fireknife Dance Competition, the Moanikeala Hula Festival, a Micronesia Betelnut Festival, and seasonal Christmas programming. Its Haunted Lagoon event was discontinued in 2013 after proving unprofitable. The center's continuing role is therefore dual: it is a commercial visitor attraction in Hawaii's tourism economy, but it also functions as a nonprofit educational and employment institution tied to BYU–Hawaii and the LDS Church.

The Polynesian Cultural Center developed from local community events in Laie rather than from a conventional commercial amusement-park venture. During the 1940s and 1950s, residents held hukilau and luau gatherings to raise money to rebuild an LDS Church chapel that had been destroyed by fire. These events combined food, music, dance, fishing traditions, and community fundraising. They also helped establish Laie as a place where visitors could encounter performances and customs associated with the Pacific islands. The cultural setting later became linked to The Hukilau Song, written after composer and singer Jack Owens encountered Laie's hukilau; Alfred Apaka subsequently helped make the song widely known. In early 1962, LDS Church president David O. McKay authorized construction of a nonprofit cultural center. The proposed institution had two connected purposes: preserving and presenting Polynesian culture, and creating employment and financial assistance for students at the newly developing Brigham Young University–Hawaii. The center was dedicated on October 12, 1963, on approximately 42 acres of land associated with the university in Laie. From the beginning, its model differed from that of a standard private theme park because operating revenue supported the attraction's activities and educational objectives rather than being distributed as conventional shareholder profit. The center expanded its visitor program through reconstructed villages, demonstrations, guided interpretation, performances, food service, canoe activities, and special events. Its cultural presentation has focused on several island societies across Polynesia, while additional programming has addressed Rapa Nui and the history of the LDS mission in Hawaii. Visitors can observe craft and performance demonstrations, participate in selected activities, eat at a luau, and watch food prepared in an imu. The lagoon provides a setting for canoe rides and choreographed water presentations, and a shuttle route connects the visitor experience with BYU–Hawaii and the Laie Hawaii Temple area. Leadership associated with the center's development, particularly Howard W. Hunter, is credited in reference material with helping transform an initially obscure and financially unsuccessful attraction into one of Hawaii's best-known visitor destinations. Tourism conditions have nevertheless affected the institution. Attendance declined after the September 11 attacks, prompting a substantial increase in advertising expenditure in 2004 and a stronger emphasis on local music, dance, and food festivals. The center also adjusted its event portfolio over time. Haunted Lagoon ended in 2013 because it was not profitable, while cultural festivals and competitions continued to provide seasonal programming. Large-scale stage productions became central to the evening offer. Hā–Breath of Life presented a multicultural Polynesian program through a cast reported at roughly 100 performers, using songs and dances from throughout the region. It followed earlier productions such as This Is Polynesia, Mana: The Spirit of Our People, and Horizons: Where the Sea Meets the Sky. The lagoon program likewise evolved, with Huki: A Canoe Celebration premiering in August 2018 after earlier canoe presentations including Rainbows of Paradise, This Is Polynesia, and Ancient Legends of Polynesia. The center's labor and education relationship remains a defining feature. Reference material states that about 70 percent of approximately 1,300 employees are BYU–Hawaii students. Students may work up to 20 hours per week during academic terms and 40 hours during breaks. Since opening, the institution has provided financial assistance to more than 12,000 students. It has also hosted visiting dignitaries, including Xi Zhongxun, then a senior Chinese official and father of Xi Jinping, during a 1980 visit to the United States. By the period covered by the reference material, the Polynesian Cultural Center attracted roughly 700,000 visitors annually and had received more than 32 million visitors since opening. Its continuing identity rests on the combination of cultural tourism, live entertainment, educational interpretation, nonprofit operations, and student employment. It remains an active Oahu attraction owned by the LDS Church and situated beside BYU–Hawaii in Laie.

1. 2018Huki: A Canoe Celebration premieres

   The lagoon show Huki: A Canoe Celebration premiered in August.

   Source
2. 2013Haunted Lagoon ends

   The Haunted Lagoon seasonal event was discontinued after failing to generate sufficient profit.

   Source
3. 2009Hā–Breath of Life launches

   The center's evening entertainment program became Hā–Breath of Life, a large Polynesian music and dance production.

   Source
4. 2004Promotional investment increases

   The center doubled its advertising budget after tourism suffered following the September 11 attacks.

   Source
5. 1980Xi Zhongxun visits the center

   Xi Zhongxun visited the Polynesian Cultural Center during a tour of the United States.

   Source
6. 1963Center dedicated in Laie

   The Polynesian Cultural Center was dedicated on October 12, 1963.

   Source
7. 1962Construction is authorized

   David O. McKay authorized a nonprofit center intended to preserve Polynesian culture and support BYU–Hawaii students through employment and educational assistance.

   Source
8. 1940Laie hukilau and luau traditions take shape

   Community hukilau and luau events in Laie raised money to rebuild an LDS chapel and established a local foundation for later cultural tourism.

   Source

A nonprofit, family-centered cultural tourism destination that combines living-history interpretation, Polynesian performing arts, dining, special events, and student-supported education in a Hawaiian setting.

• Polynesian Cultural VillagesLiving museum and cultural education1963

  The center's core daytime experience consists of simulated tropical villages and cultural areas where performers demonstrate arts, crafts, music, dance, games, food traditions, and other practices associated with Polynesian societies. Hourly presentations and participatory activities make the villages function as both visitor attractions and informal educational exhibits.

• Hā–Breath of LifeEvening theatrical production2009

  Hā–Breath of Life is a large-scale evening show built around songs and dances from across Polynesia. Its repertoire includes forms such as hula, tamure, otea, titi torea, haka, poi, meke, tauʻolunga, and taualuga. The production uses a substantial cast and presents the material as a theatrical narrative and cultural showcase.

• Huki: A Canoe CelebrationLagoon performance2018

  Huki is a lagoon-based canoe celebration in which boats and performers present signature dances associated with Polynesian cultures. It combines water movement, music, choreography, and the center's canoe setting, while replacing earlier lagoon productions such as Rainbows of Paradise and Ancient Legends of Polynesia.

• Aliʻi LuʻauCultural dining

  The Aliʻi Luʻau, or Royal Feast, provides a traditional-style Polynesian dining experience. Its presentation includes foods such as pork cooked in an imu, an underground oven, and allows guests to observe the preparation and roasting process before the meal.

• Canoe rides and lagoon activitiesVisitor activity

  Visitors can use the center's lagoon for guided canoe rides or self-paddled canoe experiences. The lagoon also serves as the venue for choreographed canoe presentations and provides a scenic framework for the attraction's cultural programming.

• World Fireknife Dance CompetitionCultural competition

  The annual World Fireknife Dance Competition brings performers together to display fireknife skills and choreography using blazing swords. It is one of the center's most prominent recurring events and extends its programming beyond routine daytime demonstrations.

• 2004Local music, dance, and food festival promotion

  Hawaii · United States tourism market

  After attendance was affected by the post-September 11 tourism downturn, the center doubled its advertising budget and promoted local music, dance, and food festivals as part of its recovery effort.

  Outcome. The reference material does not quantify the campaign's financial or attendance results.

  Source

• 2018Introduce Huki: A Canoe CelebrationProduct launch

  The center periodically refreshes its lagoon-based performance programming.

  What changed. Huki: A Canoe Celebration premiered in August 2018.

  Aftermath. Huki became the identified current canoe celebration, following earlier lagoon shows.

  Source
• 2013Discontinue Haunted LagoonStrategy

  The seasonal Haunted Lagoon event was not profitable.

  What changed. The center ended the event and concentrated its special-event programming on cultural festivals and other established offerings.

  Aftermath. Haunted Lagoon was no longer part of the center's event portfolio after 2013.

  Source
• 2009Launch Hā–Breath of LifeProduct launch

  The center used evening entertainment to deepen its cultural and visitor offering.

  What changed. It introduced Hā–Breath of Life, a large cast production combining music and dance from across Polynesia.

  Aftermath. The show became the identified evening production in the reference material.

  Source
• 2004Increase advertising after attendance declineStrategy

  Tourism attendance suffered after the September 11 attacks.

  What changed. The center doubled its advertising budget and emphasized local cultural festivals in its promotional approach.

  Aftermath. The source confirms the marketing change but does not provide a quantified outcome.

  Source
• 1962Create a nonprofit cultural and student-support institutionStrategy

  The LDS Church sought to preserve Polynesian culture while creating employment and educational support for students at BYU–Hawaii.

  What changed. David O. McKay authorized construction of a nonprofit cultural center in Laie.

  Aftermath. The center opened in 1963 and developed into a major Hawaiian tourism attraction connected to BYU–Hawaii.

  Source

• 2018Huki: A Canoe Celebration premieres

  Huki: A Canoe Celebration premiered in August 2018 as a lagoon canoe presentation featuring dances associated with Polynesian cultures.

  Product launch
  Source
• 2013Haunted Lagoon discontinued

  The seasonal Haunted Lagoon event was discontinued after the attraction was reported to be unprofitable.

  Pricing
  Source
• 2009Hā–Breath of Life becomes the evening cultural production

  The center introduced Hā–Breath of Life as a large-scale evening show presenting music and dance traditions from across Polynesia.

  Product launch
  Source
• 2004Center increases advertising after post-September 11 attendance decline

  Following a decline in tourism after the September 11 attacks, the center doubled its advertising budget and emphasized local music, dance, and food festivals in its promotional activity.

  Campaign
  Source
• 1963Polynesian Cultural Center is dedicated in Laie

  The attraction was dedicated on October 12, 1963, beginning its operation as a cultural tourist destination and student-support institution.

  Other
  Source
• 1962David O. McKay authorizes construction of a nonprofit Polynesian cultural center

  The LDS Church authorized construction of the center to support Polynesian cultural preservation and provide employment and educational assistance for BYU–Hawaii students.

  Other
  Source

1. Polynesian Cultural Center
2. Official Polynesian Cultural Center website