The famous 'ohana's lady?

[dvcdisney]

As you've been told, the lady is Lipoa, and her nights off are Sunday and Monday, so you would definately not see her those evenings.

I have never seen the man, but she speaks well of him!...As for Lipoa, her kindness is genuine!....Perhaps the cynical do not believe it, or find it irritating, but she is an excellent representative of the warmth of her culture, and is especially loving to children who are the chosen dreamers of Disney!

Before our last visit, I had emailed her to say we were coming to celebrate my husband's birthday, and she could not have done more to make him feel welcome and special!

If interaction is not your thing, that's fine!....You can go to Kona for great food, and leave the coveted O'hana ressies for those who are open to the diversity within cultures.

I'm also confused. My family and I go and enjoy the experience of 'Ohana which includes the performance. I think if we were not open to it, we would choose a different restaurant. I don't think there is anything wrong with preferring one performer over another. IMO, the man is far superior in his performance. I wouldn't get upset with anyone who said that they don't like the way he sings/interacts. It's just a matter of opinion.

And in terms of their culture, this is my point exactly, I find that he expresses himself more naturally in his role as a Hawaiian singer/entertainer. In essence, I feel very much like I'm in Hawaii when he sings and performs. I just don't get that with her. You may not agree, but I find that he interacts with the guests with much more comfort in his role.

They both sing/interact with guests (both young and old) with the same type of activities but the main difference is the delivery of their performance. You many not agree, but that doesn't mean that I don't appreciate their culture. Just the contrary. I find that he provides at atmosphere where you can't help but embrace the culture.

Will I be disappointed if we go and she's performing? Yes. But will I storm out never to go back again? Of course, not.

As I mentioned, I'm glad he's still there.

 

[TinklednPants]

I can't stand that woman! Makes my hair stand on end.

 

[NeverlandClub23]

We always seem to go when the woman is there. My favorite seats are the window seats by the marina. Far away from the speakers and her! I'm sure she's a really nice lady but I can only take so much of the loud cutesy high pitched talking/singing.

I would love to go when the guy is there! We've been to 'Ohana's about 13 times in the past 19 years and have never seen him.

 

[mommycrawford]

I was not responding to the OP, but post # 16 in its entirety:


To say that someone gives "a better Hawaianish experience...more authentic..." does not sound like a preference, but like a judgement, and it hurt to read it! People with a specific cultural background or ethnicity need the latitude to just be who they are, and not the burden of representing their culture in accord with a specific steriotype.

I can believe that you did not intend your post to read that way, but with the supporting quotes you chose, that is how it sounded to me: So it ruffled my feathers, and made me naturally want to defend!

 

[dvcdisney]

I was not responding to the OP, but post # 16 in its entirety:


To say that someone gives "a better Hawaianish experience...more authentic..." does not sound like a preference, but like a judgement, and it hurt to read it! People with a specific cultural background or ethnicity need the latitude to just be who they are, and not the burden of representing their culture in accord with a specific steriotype.

I can believe that you did not intend your post to read that way, but with the supporting quotes you chose, that is how it sounded to me: So it ruffled my feathers, and made me naturally want to defend!

Okay, now I understand. Let me start by saying that I did not intend on judging her based on her culture. I did, however, intend on providing my opinion of whether she or he was able to provide the experience. And I quoted those posts because I also prefer the man.

So, you are not upset that I prefer his performance over hers. And you can probably agree that you cannot argue whether he or she is better since you have not seen him perform. What you are saying is that you think that I have stereotyped Hawaiians in general, is this correct?

Let me preface by saying that I do not think that all Hawaiian are the same or even similar, as is with all other cultures/countries. We have been to Hawaii a few times and most of our experience have been within the tourist area. Everyone (from the front desk staff to the restaurant waitstaff) have always portrayed an atmosphere of relaxation. And this is where my experiences and expectations come from.

I will not comment about her voice, however, I can understand how others can feel the way the do. I am not insulting her. Unfortunately, although she does entertain and some obviously like her, she just doesn't give me the feeling that I'm in Hawaii. And I, absolutely, believe that this is what they are suppose to do. Do I think that she does an injustice to her culture when she performs? Of course not. She performs as she sees fit. He does as well. It just happens that I feel that he does it better.

Again, to reiterate, I assume that the purpose of their show is to make the guests feel like they are in Hawaii. This (and the food, of course) is the reason why I would choose this restaurant over others. And it is my opinion that he (far better than she) provides that Hawaiianish experience (what I believe it to be).

 

[Amy&Dan]

We really love her, I like the guy too, but prefer her, probably because she was there the first time we went and I always remember back to that night when my dd was younger and would get up and do the games with her. To each their own, I have a good friend that absolutely hates the woman and she and I go round and round about that because I love her and so does the rest of my family. All in good fun of course because in the end, its not the end of the world one way or the other.

If you go and she gets on your nerves (or he does depending on when you go), order a Lapu Lapu or two. A few of those and she could sit in your lap and yell in your face and you wouldn't care!

 

[dopeyone]

We had the man in Aug. he did a very good job and seemed to enjoy it very much!

 

[MommyPoppins]

We were there on a Saturday and she wasn't there. Food was still great. )

 

[TDC Nala]

There are two entertainers (maybe more, but there are at least two) who alternate at Ohana.

If there's any more reasonable discussion to be had on this thread, we can leave it open, but continuing debate or argument over which of these performers is better or more authentically Hawaiian will likely get it closed - please play nice, folks.