Kecak Fire Dance in Ubud, Bali
June 5, 2019
The Green Lion
Whether on a trip through the famous Monkey Forest, exploring the vivid colours in the Botanic Gardens or riding an elephant through a safari park, the wild outskirts of Ubud. But as the sun goes down a unique, colourful extravaganza starts to unfold. The ‘Kecak’ Fire Dance or simply Kecak (pronounced Kechak) is a mesmerizing dance and musical performance. The drama is based on the Hindu mythology of Ramayana and features 4 important characters: Ram, Sita, Ravana, and Hanuman. It deals with the episode of Sita’s abduction by Ravana and then her rescue. However, the portrayal is not an ordinary one. The sights and sounds of this traditional dance form needs to be seen “live” to immerse and understand its essence.
The uniqueness of this colourful extravaganza is that there are no instruments used during the entire performance, just a group of men chanting sounds continuously, in slow rhythm. The dancers move their bodies rhythmically to the left and to the right, chanting the words. Kecak starts with more than 100 performers arriving on the podium and continuously chanting “chak ke- chak ke-chak ke-chak” to set the stage for the battle of Ramayana. The chant goes something like this “chak kecak kecak” and hence, the name Kecak. The performers wear chequered clothing and sit in concentric circles around a centrepiece of fire. The performance is, therefore, called the Kecak Fire Dance.
The performance begins with the arrival of 100+ performers on stage who sit down to chant “kecak” in a chorus. The principal characters arrive after that. Ram’s beautiful wife, Sita, is kidnapped by the bad man, Ravana and taken to a faraway land. Ram seeks the help of Monkey God, Hanuman and his army to defeat Ravana and bring back Sita. The story ends with a bitter battle between Hanuman’s monkey army and Ravana’s demon army. Good triumphs over evil. The performance ends with a man walking over red- hot coconut shells, symbolising fire: a dramatic finale to an already energetic performance.
This must-see activity is a part of ‘Introduction Week’ for the International participants who come to The Green Lion Bali.
