The BARONG RANDA SANGAR

Barong Dance

Barong & Randa

The Barong Keket is half shaggy dog, half lion-and is played by two men in much the same way as a circus clown-horse. Its apponent is the rangda (witch).

The Barong repsesent good and protects the village from rangda, but is also a mischievous creature. It flounces into the temple courtyard, snaps its jaws at the gamelan, dances around and enjoys the acclaim of its supporters-a group of men with kris. Then the rangda makes her appearance, with long tongue lolling, pendulous breasts wobbling, human entrails draped around her neck, fangs protruding from her mouth and sabre-like fingernails clawing the air.

The two duel with their magical powers, and the Barong's supporters draw their kris and rush in to attack the witch. The Randa puts them in a trance and the men try to stab themselves, but the Barong also has great magical powers and casts a spell that stops the kris from harming the men. This is the most dramatic part of dances-as the gamelan rings crazily the men rush back and forth, waving their kris around, all but foaming at the mouth, sometimes even rolling on the ground in a desperate attempt to stab themselves. Finally, the rangda retires defeated-good has won agaon. Good must always triumph over evil in Bali, and no matter how many times the spectators have seen the performance or how well they know the outcome, the battle itself remains all-important.

Reference: by Lonely planet