The fabled island of Bali will this year again roll out the annual Bali Arts Festival to be held from 9 June to 7 July 2012, at Denpasar, capital of Bali.
For one full month, the best of Bali’s
dances, music, and artistic expressions will be on display as this
tourist paradise showcases its best cultural presentations. There are
daily performances of dance and music alongside countless related
cultural and commercial activities during which literally the whole of
Bali comes to the city to present its offerings of dance, music and
beauty.
Trance dances, classical court dances,
stars of Balinese cultural stage, odd village dances, food and offerings
contests, modern innovations on classical dances, flower arrangements,
fashion shows, films, and more are on the month-long agenda. Cultural
performances from other Indonesian provinces including Central
Kalimantan, North Sumatra, East Java, Riau, Jakarta, Solo and many
others will also be presented, bringing their own traditional as well
as most contemporary choreographies.
In Bali, for months now competitions
have been held in villages to select their best cultural groups to vie
for a slot in the Arts Festival to perform in front of large
international crowds who have thronged to the island.
For its 34th Bali Arts festival, organizers have chosen as theme of the Festival : “Paraos-paros”, meaning : Dynamic Togetherness.
The event itself will be highlighted with fascinating features among
which are dance dramas (Sendratari), Bali Modern theatre, Gong Kebyar
maestro, Photography Workshops, culinary festivals, and musical
performances. There will also be exciting competitions such as
documentary movie competitions, handicraft competitions, literary
writing, painting, photography competitions. Parades and processions
will also be presented including the Parade of Flowers and coconut
leaves arrangements, a culinary and fashion Parade, Nglawang Parade,
Dramatari Arja Parade, Gong Kebyar Parade, Semara pagulingan Parade,
Joged Bumbung Parade, and many others.
Each year, at the Bali Arts Festival
are featured classical dances of the island, such as the legong, gambuh,
kecak, barong, baris, mask dances and the like, on which contemporary
dance choreographies have been created and old village dances and
activities revived. Over the years, the whole range of classical
Balinese folk stories – such as the Ramayana, Mahabharata, Sutasoma,
Panji - have thus been turned into "colossal Dance dramas” known as Sendratari.
While major performances are held at the
amphitheater which can hold up to 6,000 spectators in a temple-like
stage, others are held at locations across the city and surrounding
areas.
Since most of the art and cultural
activities in Bali are motivated by religious devotion, artists will
attempt to create their best works.
Through its 34 years history, the Bali
Arts Festival has been a media to rediscover and preserve the unique and
celebrated arts and culture of Bali, at the same time increase its
people’s welfare. Through this special annual event, it is hoped that
the true authentic wisdom and philosophy of the people of Bali will not
only be preserved but will also grow and spread to other parts of the
world.
