In the murky depths of April in South Bend, everyone could use a little warmth, sunshine and celebration to cheer things up. The Hawaii Club is bringing just that to Notre Dame's campus this Saturday evening.

This year's annual Hawaii Club lu'au is armed with an ethnic feast that is sure to tantalize the taste buds and real Hawaiian entertainment to enjoy.

For several months now, Notre Dame's own Hawaii Club (known as Na Pua Kai Ewalu, which means "the flowers of the sea") has been preparing for this event. With about 50 active members, the club is a vehicle for Hawaiian students to share their culture and bring a little of the flavor from their island to Indiana. The club also serves as a support system for students from Hawaii who are living 5,000 miles from their home.

"Coming to the Midwest was definitely a culture shock," said freshman Sam August. "Not only is the physical environment totally different here, but the people are different too."

For freshman Teresa Tumbaga, the biggest change was the weather. "I miss the sun," Tumbaga said. "There are days here where there is no sun at all. I have a much better appreciation for the warmth now."

The upperclassmen in the club help the freshman with the transition right from the beginning of the year. One event the club held this year was a shopping trip for winter clothes to prepare for the frigid South Bend winter. Between Hawaii and the Midwest, there are many cultural differences, from the music and sports that are played to the role of religion in people's lives.

"Not that one culture is superior to another, but in Hawaii people are more liberal and more diverse," August said. "Here there is a strong base of morality and Catholic presence."

Offering support during this adjustment period is one of the Hawaii Club's goals. "The club is very tight-knit and the older students really help you to get acclimated," said August. "It's a really big shift coming here, and the club really helped ease the transition."

Yet not all the members of the club are from Hawaii; a large section of the club is made up of roommates and friends eager to learn about and share in the Hawaiian culture. Similar to the state of Hawaii, it is a very diverse group.

Every year, the Hawaii Club's most anticipated event is the lu'au. It is an annual sell-out, earning the "Ethnic Event of the Year" award last year. The Hawaii Club itself won the "Ethnic Club of the Year" award last year as well.

Club members have been fundraising all year to put on the lu'au, but no profit is made from the actual event. In fact, the club actually loses money in an effort to keep ticket prices down for the guests.

"The lu'au isn't about making money," said Malia Lam, Hawaii Club co-president. "It's about sharing the Hawaiian culture with the Notre Dame community."

This year, as in years past, the event will draw its show straight from Hawaiian culture. In addition to the traditional Hawaiian feast, the lu'au will showcase a hula dance performed by members of the club.

Perhaps the most recognizable tradition from the islands, the hula dance has its origins dating far back into Hawaiian history. The hula is more than a dance; it is a means of communication between the dancer and the viewer. The fingers and feet of the dancer move in specific ways to tell stories to the audience.

Historically, the hula relayed tales about all aspects of human life, including birth, death, war and even surfing. However, with the 1820 invasion of Westerners onto Hawaiian soil, the hula became extinct for 76 years. Americans thought the hula dance was primitive and vulgar, so it was prohibited, as was the Hawaiian language itself, from being taught in schools on the island.

The dance did not disappear completely, however. Thanks to Hollywood and the American entertainment industry, the hula has become a symbolic representation of Hawaii. Extensive tourism has also done its part to make the rich history of the hula available to all Americans. Only since the 1960's have Hawaiians been rediscovering the true nature of their roots that were submerged in the past for so long.

Interestingly, many of the Notre Dame students from Hawaii learn more about their native culture here in Indiana rather than back home. For example, most of the students had never hula danced or prepared ethnic foods before they went away to college. Of all the club members, only two had significant experience with hula dancing before coming to the Midwest.

"It's funny — I had to travel 5,000 miles away from home to learn about the culture I grew up in," said August. "The club really gives you a better appreciation for life back home."

Although Tumbaga knew a little about hula dancing before coming to Notre Dame, she still learned things about her culture back home.

"I've never Tahitian danced before, and that is what we were being taught for the lu'au," said Tumbaga, describing the Tahitian dance as "the dance you see those dolls do, where their hips swing back and forth."

Through their annual lu'au, Notre Dame's Hawaii Club takes this culture and literally lays it on the table for all the campus to experience. One of the most anticipated parts of the lu'au is the traditional feast. Blending ancient Hawaiian culture with some modern day flavor, the club has been selecting recipes and preparing ethnic foods for Saturday's event.

The main dish will be a kalua pig, which entails much preparation before feasting. Traditionally, a kalua pig is placed into an imu (a hole dug in the ground), and is smoked with spices and other delicacies for a number of hours to ensure perfect flavoring.

Of course, due to campus regulations, digging a hole in front of the main building to smoke a pig isn't exactly permitted, so the club has to make do with what they have by attempting to smoke the pig in an oven.

Many other ethnic foods will be served as well: shoyu chicken, which is simply soy sauce with chicken as derived from Japan; poi, which is taro roots; lau lau pork, a dish of pork and spinach wrapped in ti leaves; and lomi lomi salmon shipped to Notre Dame straight from Hawaii. White rice, the Hawaiian starch served with every meal, will be also be available, along with fruit punch with a distinctly Hawaiian taste. For dessert, traditional treats such as haupia, which is coconut jello, and coconut cake will be served.

Food preparations for the event have been going on all week. "A lot of work goes into [the dinner]," Tumbaga said. "We've been shredding the pork by hand, which takes a lot of time. Also, preparing the desserts and other foods has been tedious too. It's all a lot of fun though — we're having a great time doing it."

After gorging in the feast comes time to sit back, relax and enjoy the evening's entertainment. This year's theme of the lu'au is "Holoholo Kakou: The 2002 Lu'au," which roughly translates to "let's go" in English. Following this idea of energy and movement, many of the dances will have to do with methods of transportation, like canoeing, horseback riding or riding a train.

Given all the work that goes into the preparation for this event, the hula is considered one of the highlights of the lu'au. Far from a feminine art, as it is often portrayed, the hula is actually a universal form of dance made up of couples, all men or all women. Showing the results of many weekend practices, club members who have been taught by kumu hulas — teachers of the hula — will be performing about 10 dances in the traditional manner.

"We've been practicing informally on the weekends, but this week we've been practicing more and more as the lu'au gets closer," said Josh Kaakua, one of the kumu hulas.

"This past week we've been putting a lot more time in to get ready," said Tumbaga, who will be participating in the dancing. "My parents are sending out flowers and ti leaves for our costumes. The final show will be pretty good."

In addition to the dancing, traditional music will also be featured throughout the night. During the meal, club members will be singing and playing the ukulele for the enjoyment of those eating. Karen Keawehawai'i, a well-known singer on the islands and mother of one of the club members, will also perform, along with Station One, winners of Notre Dame's Nazz festival. The band has ties to the south Pacific through its lead singer Laurence Santiago, who is from Guam, and through Peter and David Miller, whose father is from Hawaii.

The true spectacle of the night, however, promises to be when audience members are called up onstage to partake in the dancing and music themselves. An annual event, guests of the lu'au are selected and taught how to dance the hula. The rest of the spectators vote on which audience member gives the best performance by means of applause.

When asked to name the best part of the lu'au as an event, Lam said it was more than the feast or the dancing. "It's the preparation — the club pulls together in the final weeks and works really hard," said Lam. "When you're there with everyone, you can pretend you're in Hawaii again. It's great to teach others about the culture; overall, it's a great bonding experience."

For those who want to join in the festivities, the lu'au will be held Saturday at 6:30 p.m. in the Lafortune Ballroom. Just follow the scent of the smoking pig and the sound of the gentle strumming of the ukulele. It's an opportunity to experience some Hawaiian culture and maybe even a chance to get your hula on.

• The Hawaii Club presents "Holoholo Kakou: The 2002 Lu'au"