Three short days were not enough to do justice to Ubud. Palaces remained unseen and a number of places remained unvisited. Our third day ended with us being excruciatingly tired.
We were making our way to Suparsa’s guesthouse when we stumbled across some people who were selling tickets for a fire dance that was to be held that night. The urge to tick one more item of the checklist was irresistible and that’s how we landed up booking three tickets for the show.
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MEETING THE TAMAM KAJA COMMUNITY
The Tamam Kaja Community holds a Kecak fire dance and trance dance every Wednesday and Saturday at 7:30 pm. The dance is held at the Pura Dalem Taman Kaja in Ubud. You can enter and watch the dance for a mere 75,000 rph person.
As you enter in you are provided with a leaflet which gives you a description and a background about the Kecak dance and the trance fire dance. The Kecak dance that I watched was an enactment of a part of the Ramayana.
The accompanying music is what makes the dance so special. This music is provided by human voices and is called gamelan suara.
The gamelan suara is a choir of around a hundred men. The men sit in concentric circles and sway in rhythm to the song. Amidst the swaying choir, you can hear the sole voice of the story teller.
THE FIRE DANCE: WHO ARE THESE FEARLESS MEN WHO DANCE UPON THE FLAMES?
The Sanghyang is a god inspired trance dance. The idea behind the dance is to protect the society from epidemics and evil forces.
While there are many forms that the dance can take we witnessed the Sanghyang Djaran. Here ‘Djaran’ means ‘horse’. The dance tells the story of a horse rider who is lulled by the repetitive sounds of the gamelan suara. While in his trance he walks on a bed of burning coconut shells. His dance is in response to the rise and fall of the sounds that the gamelan suara provides.
A Fire Dance Like None We Have Ever Seen
At the end of the Kecak dance a flurry of activity unfolded in front of us. Metallic structures were placed in front of us. We found that a bit queer but we soon found out why they were needed. The first bit of business was to light a bonfire using coconut shells. The fire died out quickly but the embers glowed red in the night. The dancer (who played the part of the horse rider) soon made his entrance. While we watched in horror, the dancer proceeded to scatter the burning ember with his bare feet.
Time and again the embers were collected and time and again he scattered them again. The dance was accompanied by the voices of the singing men. The portrayal of fire dance in Bali is very different from what we are used to. It doesn’t involved death defying stunts thought it did make us hold our breath. The aim was to tell a tale and not to awe.
No Experience Is Complete Without A Few Observations
I did make some interesting observations both before and after the performance. The whole performance took place in one of the local temples. I assumed that it meant that the women had to cover up and I carried my sarong with me.
Tying it around my waist I ensured that my legs were concealed. Other tourists however did not nor was there anyone to stop them. I was inclined to believe that the Balinese have no objection to short clothing. It was only later that I found out that it was overlooked only during the fire dance.
If you are headed to Ubud, I would suggest reading about what not to do in Bali before you go.
After the dance was over, the audience was invited to join the dancers and interact. They were also allowed to take photographs with the performers. We had a ferry to catch the next day and couldn’t wait. As I left, I saw a number of young children being entertained.
The Balinese welcome and warmth was evident by the way the performers interacted and welcomed the attention that the little children gave them. It was a pleasant end to a lovely day.
The Kecak Fire Dance In A Nutshell
- The Kecak fire dance tells a story. Try and read the story on the pamphlet before the dance starts so you can understand what is happening.
- The heat can get uncomfortable so if you use contact lenses remove them before hand or sit in the back row.
- Don’t forget to carry mosquito repellent.
- The dance is usually held in a temple. Respect their culture and cover up. A simple sarong will do the trick.