Barong Dance in Bali

Today we are heading northeast from Denpasar City (I think I have my direction correct!) to attend a traditional Balinese dance performance in the town of Batubulan.

Welcome to the Barong Dance.

We are the first to arrive but soon there will be bus loads of tour groups  arriving so let’s choose the best seat!

(Hint: Click on any photo to enlarge it!)

Did you notice the men in the turquoise blue jackets seated just in front of the stage? They are the musicians who will provide the music during the play. 

Just looking at the instruments they will be playing one knows the sound will be very different from music we are used to in Canada.

Now that the audience is seated and the musicians are in their places at the side of the stage let’s watch the Balinese story of the fight between good and evil.

The set is genuinely Balinese (duh!). What I mean is that if you walk around the rural areas of Bali you will see scenes just like this. Well, okay the costumes are only seen on special traditional days…but other than that the scenery is all Bali.

There is no speaking during the play/dance. The story is told completely through the dance…so it is advisable to know the basic story before attending. (We did not know anything about the story, but still were able to follow along fairly well.)

Basic overview: Randgda (demon queen) is upset and decides to cast an evil spell on the village and kidnaps the princess. Barong (a lion-like creature) is the good guy who comes to the rescue of the village. The battle between the forces of good and evil becomes quite intense.

Let’s have a look at a few scenes.

We are totally enthralled as we experience this performance…so different than anything we could see at home.

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Happy Travels!