Bali - Ubud - Legong and Barong Dance

On our last night in Ubud we went to a dance performance. There are 7-8 dance performances every evening in Ubud so it's hard to decide which to attend. We chose the one we went to because it was the only location we were familiar with, and it was right next to the shuttle stop for our hotel.

There are many types of dances, including one that uses shadow puppets and one that makes generous use of fire. Some are performed only by women, some only by men, and some only by children. Some are performed only in temples to welcome the Gods, some are performed only during war, and some are performed during ceremonies like weddings and graduations.

Martin and I went to a performance of Legong and Barong. Legong is only performed by pre-pubescent girls. It is characterized by intricate finger movements and facial expressions. Classical Legong dance tells one of several stories that always involve a young girl and a group of nymphs.

Here is an excerpt describing the story behind 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.

The story goes that Rangda, the mother of Erlangga, the King of Bali in the tenth century, was condemned by Erlangga's father because she practiced black magic. After she became a widow, she summoned all the evil spirits in the jungle, the leaks and the demons, to come after Erlangga. A fight occurred, but she and her black magic troops were too strong that Erlangga had to ask for the help of Barong. Barong came with Erlangga's soldiers, and fight ensued. Rangda cast a spell that made Erlangga soldiers all want to kill themselves, pointing their poisoned keris into their own stomachs and chests. Barong cast a spell that turned their bodies resistant to the sharp keris. At the end, Barong won, and Rangda ran away.

The masks of Barong and Rangda are considered sacred items, and before they are brought out, a priest must be present to offer blessings by sprinkling them with holy water taken from Mount Agung, and offerings must be presented.

Here are the pictures we took of the Barong. It is danced by two people and is supposed to be either a lion, boar, tiger, or bear depending on which region of Bali you're in but I'm not sure which one this is:







After the Legong and Barong stories were presented, the dancers continued on to tell a story of a woman who was cast out of Heaven and told she had to seduce two giants in order to get back in. So here are the giants:





And here is the girl who needed to seduce them:



In the end, she succeeded in seducing the giants and everybody was happy. This dance performance was certainly different from anything we'd ever seen before - the costumes were detailed and colorful and the hand and finger movements were fascinating. I tried to do a few of them myself and couldn't but if I had started practicing when I was 5 I'd probably be able to do them.