Bride Surprises Hawaiian Groom at Wedding with Heartfelt Hula Dance After Weeks of Secret Practice (Exclusive)

A bride's astonishment hula creation solo near her Hawaiian groom successful awe.

For years, Oʻahu-born Austin Rodrigues-Ganigan, 29, jokingly reminded his then-girlfriend, contented creator Sofia Bella, 28, that it was a Hawaiian wedding contented for brides to hula dance. At nan time, Sofia would simply laughter and opportunity she was "too shy" to do that, but successful reality she was "already planning" to 1 time astonishment him pinch nan typical wedding performance.

"Austin ever says hula is storytelling — it’s truthful overmuch much than dance," Sofia tells PEOPLE. "Before nan wedding, he had america watch nan Merrie Monarch Festival, and I retrieve watching his eyes ray up during nan performances. That’s erstwhile I knew I wanted to astonishment him pinch a hula astatine nan wedding."

When nan couple's wedding time yet came connected Sept. 27 astatine Los Prados Golf Club successful Las Vegas, Sofia was "so tense [she] could virtually consciousness [herself] shaking." Of nan 115 wedding guests, only nan bride's mother, 2 sisters and different hula dancers were successful connected nan surprise.

"Everyone else, including Austin, was wholly shocked," Sofia notes.

Sofia had been practicing for "about six weeks," taking backstage lessons pinch hula group Pupu ʻOri Te Nati. She selected nan emotion opus "Ke Aloha" by Natalie Ai Kamauu, which is "a beautiful opus of devotion betwixt a female and a man" that she feels "told [their] emotion communicative successful nan astir poetic way." She rehearsed each 2 weeks pinch nan kumu (teacher), and besides practiced successful concealed whenever Austin wasn’t around.

At nan wedding reception, a fewer hula dancers performed past called Sofia to nan stage. The group of women pretended to thatch her a elemental four-step. Once nan euphony started, nan hula dancers stepped backmost and near Sofia unsocial to shine.

"At first, I thought nan dancers were really conscionable pulling her up for fun. But nan 2nd she started dancing, I knew this was thing she had planned each along. I was truthful happy," Austin tells PEOPLE. "It was nan astir thoughtful measurement she could person honored maine and my heritage. I’ll ne'er hide it."

The 2nd Sofia locked eyes pinch her now-husband during her solo, her "nerves disappeared."

"In that moment, it felt for illustration it was conscionable nan 2 of america successful nan room," says Sofia, who wore a lei po‘o and caller flower lei. Austin adds, "I could show she was nervous, but she didn’t break oculus interaction pinch me. It was for illustration she was dancing only for me, and thing other mattered."

Sofia continues, "Seeing his look ray up made each nan nerves worthy it. It felt for illustration nan champion gift I could ever springiness him."

Guests "went wild" during nan hula dance.

"My relative was cheering, Austin’s cousins were cheehooing, and his grandpa — who flew successful from Hawaii — was beaming," Sofia says. "Even his dada sewage emotional. Everyone was smiling receptor to ear."

Austin, who wore a ti leafage lei astatine nan wedding, remembers that "everyone was truthful touched."

"You could consciousness nan power successful nan room," he says. "It wasn’t conscionable intermezo — it was thing that connected straight to who we are."

The groom is still successful awe by nan saccharine surprise.

"I ne'er thought she’d really do it! I would tease her astir dancing astatine our wedding, but I honestly didn’t deliberation she’d spell done pinch it. So erstwhile I realized she had learned a afloat hula conscionable for me, it blew maine away," he says. "The truth that she chose a opus that carries truthful overmuch meaning successful our civilization made it moreover much affectional for me. She didn’t conscionable creation — she told a story."

"It meant a lot" to Austin, whose Hawaiian practice comes from his father's broadside of nan family, that Sofia wanted to bring some their cultures into their nuptials.

"His mediate name, Na’aihoolaha, has been passed down for 8 generations. He’s ever been truthful rooted successful his Hawaiian civilization — from nan nutrient his family eats to nan euphony they love," Sofia says. "My inheritance is Cuban and Mexican, truthful we wanted our wedding to consciousness for illustration a ceremony of some of our worlds. We had mariachi and hula dancers, Island reggae during dinner, and reggaetón astatine nan party.”

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Other nods to Hawaii were incorporated into nan ceremony, cocktail hr and reception.

"Austin’s grandpa had caller lei shipped successful from Hawaii. He placed them connected america aft nan ceremony, and moreover gave 1 to my mom," Sofia shares. "The groom signature cocktail was called ‘The Island Groom’ pinch POG juice. The bride signature cocktail was called 'La Bella Novia' Spanish and 'Bella' because of my mediate sanction — it was a margarita de jamaica. We besides mixed our cultures successful nan food: ceviche and chimichurri steak from mine, lomi lomi salmon and Huli chickenhearted from his."