Fireknife dancers vie for world title

Contests for the World Fireknife Competition are set to begin Thursday, May 18 and the Polynesian Cultural Center in Laie, Hawai`i. The event runs until Saturday.

More than 40 competitors will compete for the title of world's best fireknife dancer won last year by Mikaele Oloa.



The dance form, which originated in Samoa, is now practiced by dancers coming from many different cultures.

A flaming knife is whirled around at high speeds as the dancer performs acrobatic dance moves and gyrations.


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Bishops sound off but won't ban Da Vinci Code

Catholic bishops in the Philippines condemned the yet-to-be-released The Da Vinci Code, but said they would not call for a ban of the movie.

The announcement comes after some Catholic church leaders had asked censors to nix the film from Philippine theaters.

Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) released a "guide" to the movie outlining its fallacies, according to the church, but said they would respect freedom of expression.

Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales said the movie presented the greatest challenge to the church since the Arian heresy of the 4th century.

The film inspired by the novel by Dan Brown and produced by Sony Pictures is due for release in May.


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Production retarts on "The City of Golden Armor"

Production on Zhang Yimou's The City of Golden Armor staring Chow Yun-Fat amd Gong Li as emperor and empress repectively restarted at Hengdian World Studios.

The film with its 44+ million budget is the most expensive Chinese production yet. A full-scale replica of buildings at the Forbidden City has been decorated for the shoot.


Gong Li in Memoirs of a Geisha. Columbia Pictures photo from Yahoo Movies

Based on the the modern play Thunderstorm by Cao Yu, the movie depicts a power struggle between emperor and empress during the T'ang Dynasty.


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