Dancers put the cha-cha in Chile

The Kari Kari troupe performs traditional dances from Easter Island last Friday at The Shilla Seoul as part of Chilean Week in Korea. Provided by Intnet Co., Ltd

In Rapanui, the native language of Easter Island in the South Pacific, the word “kari kari” describes the rhythmic movement of a woman’s narrow midsection as she dances.
There couldn’t be a more apt name for the dance troupe that took the stage at The Shilla Seoul last Friday.
The kinetic energy of Kari Kari, a Rapanui ethnic ballet troupe, filled the room as they celebrated Chilean Week in Korea, hosted by ProChile, the Chilean Trade Commission.
Easter Island, also known as Rapa Nui, is an overseas territory of Chile.
As troupe leader Lynn Jaime Rapu Tuki strummed out a cheerful melody on the ukelele, the drum set the beat for dancers Tamy Marcela Rapu Atán, Luis Andrés Hormazabal Araki and Patricia Beatriz Nahoe Arellano. True to the group’s name, the dancers’ oscillating bare midriffs seemed to punctuate the music.
The performers’ attire of grass or floral skirts and impressive straw and feather headdresses accented their swiveling hips and flowing arms.
“We are devoting our music to share our culture,” Sergio Alejo Rapu Haoa, the first Rapa Nui native to become governor of the island, said in an introduction to the performance.
At points, the dancers invited audience members onstage.
“I was frightened and surprised, but I didn’t have any hesitation. I like to dance,” said Kim Young-gil of the Korea Audit Bureau of Circulation, after his spirited turn on the stage.
“I was a little nervous,” said Adriana Valdez, 16, daughter of Ceferino Adrian Valdez Peralta, Paraguay’s ambassador to Korea. “But it was a lot of fun. The dance is beautiful.”
But what about the audience? “Korea has a beautiful culture,” Araki, the dancer, said of his visit here.

By Hannah Bae Contributing Writer [hannahbae@gmail.com]