Indonesia: Balinese classical dancer by Tyra Kleen (1874-1951), c.1935

Tyra Kleen, sometimes written Thyra, born 29 March 1874 in Stockholm, died in 1951, was a Swedish artist and writer. Her illustrations can be signed T.Kn.

Balinese dance is a very ancient dance tradition that is a part of the religious and artistic expression among the Balinese people, native to Bali island, Indonesia. Balinese dance is dynamic, angular and intensely expressive. The Balinese dancers express the story of dance-drama through the whole bodily gestures; fingers, hands and body gestures to head and eyes movements.

There is a great richness of dance forms and styles in Bali; and particularly notable are those ritualistic dance dramas which involve Rangda, the witch, and the great beast Barong. Most dances in Bali are connected to Hindu rituals, such as the Sanghyang Dedari sacred dance that invoke hyang spirits that are believed to possess the dancers in trance state during the performance. Other Balinese dances are not linked to religious rituals and created for certain purposes, such as the Pendet welcoming dance and the Joged dance, a social dance for entertainment.

In Bali there are various categories of dance, including epic performances such as the Mahabharata and Ramayana. Certain ceremonies at village temples feature a special performance of a dance-drama, a battle between the mythical characters Rangda, the witch representing evil, and Barong, the lion or dragon, representing good.

Among the dance traditions in Bali, the following deserve special mention: Barong, Legong and Kecak.

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