"Lord of the forest" and magical protector of Balinese villages, the Barong is a mythical, shaggy half-dog, half-lion creature, with a long mane, fantastic fangs, and bulging eyes. It is propelled by two men who maneuver the costume with whimsical and mischievous movements to express its fun-loving nature. The Barong's opponent is Rangda, the evil witch who rules over the spirits of Darkness. The Barong dance epitomizes the eternal struggle between good and evil. The fight of Barong and Rangda is also a topic of traditional narratives performed in temples and takes various forms. The Barong will snap its jaws at the gamelan, prance around a bit, and enjoy the acclaim of its supporters - a group of kris-wielding men. Then ferocious Rangda will then appear lolling her long tongue, baring her threatening fangs, her neck draped with human entrails...not a pretty sight.

The duel begins. Each opponent tries to overcome the other with magical powers but when things do not look too good for the Barong, supporters will lunge at Rangda with krises to weaken or stall her. In retaliation, Rangda would put them all into a trance with her mystical powers and make them stab themselves with their weapons. Fortunately, the Barong possesses magic that is strong enough to cast a spell on the krises from harming the men. This part would be the highlight of the dance; the gamelan rings madly and intensely as the men rush back and forth waving their krises in a frenzy, sometimes even rolling on the ground in a desperate attempt to stab themselves. Often, there seems to be a plot to terrify the audience in the front row! Eventually, Rangda will retire, defeated. And once again, good will reign over evil.

The most graceful of Balinese dances, this is the epitome of classical Balinese female dancing. A legong, as the dancer is known, is often a young girl of eight or nine years, rarely older than her early teens. It was first created in the 18th Century and is usually the first dance to be taught to beginners. There are many forms of Legong, the most frequently performed dance being the Legong Keraton or Legong of the Palace.

The story of the Legong is very stylized and symbolic and one should know the story before actually watching the performance. The Legong involves three dancers - two legongs and their 'attendant', the condong. The legongs are identically costumed in gold brocade, which is bound so tightly that it is a mystery such agitated and rapid moves could be made. With elaborately made-up faces, plucked eyebrows that are boldly repainted, and hair decorated with frangipanis, the dancers relate the story with captivating movements.

A king takes the maiden Rangkesari captive. When her brother comes to release her, Rangkesari begs the king to free her rather than go to war. The king refuses and chances upon a bird carrying ill omens on his way to battle. However, he ignores the bird, meets Rangkesari's brother, and was thus killed in the fight.

The roles of the dancers may change according to the narration. However, the dance usually begins with the king's preparations for battle and ends with the bird's appearance.

A male equivalent of the Legong, Baris is a warrior's dance. Executed with energetic and warlike martial spirit, the Baris dancer has to convey the thoughts and emotions of a warrior preparing for action as well as confronting an enemy in battle. This dance is performed solo and requires great energy, spirit and skill. The warrior's changing moods have to be displayed through facial expressions and movements; he should be able to depict chivalry, pride, anger, prowess, and a little regret. Baris is said to be one of the most complex of all Balinese dances.

The Panyembrama is probably the most popular Balinese social dance. In keeping with its meaning in the Balinese Language, Panymebrama is frequently staged to welcome guests of honour who are making a visit to this islands of the Gods.

Four or eight young girls bearing a bokor, a heavily engraved bowl made from silver or aluminium, laden with flowers, dance expressively to the accompaniment of vibrant gamelan music.

During the dance, the flowers are scattered over the guest or audience as an expression of welcome. The Panymebrama has taken many of its movements from temple dances, such as the Rejang Dance, Pendet and Gabor, which are considered sacred and performed exclusively for God. There is an analogy between the secular Panymebrama and the religious temple dances, as all these dances are welcoming dances, the difference being in the place in which they are stage.

The Tari Panymebrama comes under the Balinese classification of Legong (individual dances), because it has no connection with other dances, has no story and was specifically created for welcoming and entertainment purposes.

The hospitality and friendliness conveyed through the smiles of the Panymebrama girls, charms the audience and so is very fitting as an opening for a show, etc.

Yudapati is a dance which depicts a male character but is performed by female dancers. The word Yudapati is derived from Yuda which means war and Pati which means death. The dance represents the kamikaze warrior in defending the truth. The dance was created in 1987. It is based on the Baris dance.

The dancer wears typical male attire, headcloth, shirt, carved leather belt and other jewellery. The reason for a male being performed by a female is that the choreographer wishes to reveal all the subtle gestures and movements in the dance by using the flexibility of a woman's body.

Male dance performed by females is called Bebancihan. A number of other dances have been created in the s style, such as Margapati, Trunajaya, Prawireng Puti, Wiranata and Danur Dara. They require masculine interpretation and expression which is quite hard for female dancers. Yudapati dance was originally performed for religious purposes but nowadays is performed regularly as a tourist attraction in some restaurants.

This dance provides the audience with an interesting insight into the lives of people who live in a simple and pure manner in an environment of blissful tranquillity. This dance originated in 1984 and usually performed by five boy dancers. The characters of the Ghopala dance are especially funny and will draw laughter from the audience.

The Ghopala theme depicts the world of children herdsmen who gleefully meet and play along the boundaries of rice fields while tending their cows. Their lives are filled with happiness as they dance and play in a way which highlights their individual characters. They never tire of their duties as herdsmen, faithfully defending the lives of their cattle. Thus the audience are transported to a distant time when people lived in peace and contentment, an age which had not yet become influenced by the bustle of business which now constantly steals our time.

As we know, there exists many art forms such as music, painting, poetry, drama, sculpture, etc. and, of course, dancing is yet another and is a popular form of expression. Artists will take a certain aspect of a medium, build on it to form another. This is the case of the Semarayana dance developed in 1994 as a subject for a thesis submitted by Ms Ni Nyoman Sri Armita to the Indonesian Arts Academy of Denpasar for her graduation.

The main character is Dewi Chandra Kirana, a princess from the kingdom of Daha who disguised herself as a male youth so she could venture out and seek her beloved who had disappeared without a trace.

With shoulder length hair, commonly used centuries ago throughout Java and Bali, the princess was unrecognisable as a female. The symbol of manhood which fooled people she met on the road, was the use of the Balinese male headgear called the Destar. It is made from material that wraps around the head and has an artistic formation of bunched material at the front.

Balinese males still use the destar when attending ceremonies. The feature of the destar is the decorative use of gold lines.

Dewi meets her beloved but due to her disguise and the fact that he is partly obscured when they meet, a fight develops. In the ensuing melee, the princess's destar is knocked from her head and her sweetheart, Raden Inu Kertapati, recognises her and rushes to her side to embrace her.

And, of course, they lived happily ever after.

The unique feature of the Sanghyang Jaran dance is the courage of the dancers who in a state of Kesurupan or trance, calmly step and trample on red hot coals just as if they were walking in cold water.

This dance is believed to have the power to invite the gods or sacred spirits to enter the body of the dancers and put them in a state of trance. It dates back to the ancient Pre-Hindu culture, a time when the Balinese people strongly believed that a dance could eliminate sickness and disease. The is dance is usually performed in the fifth or sixth month of the Balinese traditional calendar as it is believe that during these particular months, the Balinese are vulnerable to all kinds of illnesses.

The Gebug Ende is a combination of dance and trial of prowess. It is usually performed by two to sixty male dancers who dance and fight on stage in pairs. Each dancer/fighter carries a one and a half metre long rattan stick as as a weapon and a shield called an ende. During the performance the two men try to beat one another with the stick while using the ende to protect themselves. The dance is called Gebug Ende as it literally means beating the ende or shield. One cannot afford to make mistakes in this dance as otherwise injury results.

The Gebug Ende is quite unique as it has certain rules that have to be followed by the participants. Led by a jury, this dance starts with two dancers, while the rest sit in a circle, cracking jokes and singing, while waiting their turn. The jury decide which of the two contestants loses the game and has to leave the stage. Then they will call the next men to the stage. This continues until all have had a turn. Sometimes the fight becomes very fierce and the dancers get thrown of the stage from the blows of the rattan stick. Bruises and wounds are common in this ritual.

The Trunajaya dance describes the emotions of a young man through love and passion. The dance movements reflect the theme of courtship and love.

Truna meaning 'single' and jaya meaning 'to win' immediately gives an understanding of the dance. Ironically, the dancer are young women who take on the role of young men. The women wear a 'destar' normally worn by men and an unusual loin-cloth called a 'kancut'. The Trunajaya is normally danced by a single female but sometimes two, dancing together in synchronous movements and to the mesmorotic sounds of the 'Gong Kebyar', a fast, rhythmic beat which goes in harmony to the dance. The dance was created by Wayan Wandres, from Singaraja, Northern Bali.