Balinese masked dancer performs character of old man
About this photograph
- Creator
- Margery H. Freeman
- Date created
- 1986
- Location
- Ubud, Bali, Indonesia
- License
- This photograph copyright ©2007. Terms of use
See this photograph in context
- Traditional performing arts in Bali: Photographs and text illustrate traditional performance in Bali, including music, theater, and dance. (Page 7)
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In the classroom
- See our collection of articles on visual literacy for ideas on using photographs meaningfully in the classroom.
A Balinese masked dancer performs the character of an old man. The dancer’s mask is carved of wood and painted with with large round eyes and a moustache. The dancer wears an elaborate red and gold cape over a white tunic.
Masked dances have existed for over a thousand years in Java and Bali. With their faces covered by a mask, the dancers must convey all the character’s feelings without the help of facial expressions.
Masked dances featuring the Old Man are favored in Bali. Although frail with age, through dance, the character remembers and enacts a time in the past when he had more energy and vigor.
