Bali Dances and Performances

There are several other dances that could excite you. Dance and drama have historically played an important role in Balinese society. Balinese dances are famous all over the world and the Balinese themselves take them very seriously.Birthdays, weddings, and temples festivals are all occasions for dramatic performances and dance is inextricably linked with the Balinese religion. Through this

Legong Dance

In Bali, not every one have same understanding of the word "Legong". Until today some Balinese think that legong is any non-dramatic dances performed by woman. One of the cause is the popularity of kebyar dances that become so popular in Bali after legong era. Instead, the word Legong Kraton, means 'legong of the palace', is often used by the Balinese referring to all repertoire of legong.

Balinese Gamelan

The Balinese orchestra is called a gamelan. Strictly the word refers to the instruments, not the players. The Bali-Hindu religion requires the gamelan for the success of the thousands of ceremonies performed every year. There are more than two dozen distinct types of gamelan, each with their own traditions, repertoire and social or religious functions. The music is full of insistent rhythms and

Drama Mask

Dramas masks are used in four traditional Balinese Dramas and processions: the Topeng, which enacts stories from the times of the old Balinese kingdoms and establishes a link with the ancestor world; the Barong, which involves giant puppets and animals that serve as protective spirits enabling a village to ward off evil; the Wayang Wong, which performs the Ramayana, a great Hindu epic dramatizing

Baris Dance

According to Covarrubias no dance in the world can be manlier than baris. Baris, a traditional war dance, typifies the strong elegance of the male and is the source of for all masculine dances. The Baris dance can be performed by men in pairs of four, eight, sometimes even tens; the accompanying gamelan is the gamelan gong or gamelan gong kebyar. The word “baris” means a line or military

Barong Dance

Barong is probably the most well known dance. It is also another story telling dance, narrating the fight between good and evil. This dance is the classic example of Balinese way of acting out mythology, resulting in myth and history being blended into one reality.No one can explain the meaning of the word Barong. The name of the Barong depends on the animal represented. If the mask is of a tiger

Balinese Wayang Kulit: The Ancient Shadows Plays

The shadow puppet plays, known as wayang kulit are popular not only in Bali but throughout Indonesia. Far more than mere entertainment, the wayang kulit is an extremely important vehicle of culture, serving as carrier of myth, morality play, and form of religious experience rolled into one.The puppets are believed to have great spiritual power, and are "brought to life" by special ceremonies

Wayang Wong

The heroes of the great Hindu epics, the "Ramayana" and "Mahabharata", have served as role models for the Balinese for many generations. In the Wayang Wong, the ancient stories of the Ramayana are converted to mask dramas enacting the battle between truth and justice and the forces of evil. Also providing the Balinese with positive images of behavior, Wayang Wong nurtures the belief that acts of