Topeng – Storytelling from Bali

Topeng : the Art of Dance and 
Storytelling in Bali, Indonesia

A presentation for the CTA Spotlight Series

Tuesday, January 21, 2003
7:00 – 8:30 p.m.
Bruce T. Halle Library, Room 300
 

Topeng is a theatrical genre of dance and historical storytelling in Bali, Indonesia. Topeng performances combine music with a series of short character dances and longer narratives, performed solo or by a troupe of four to five actor/dancers who each take on different roles as the evening progresses. Topeng has something for everyone in the Balinese audience – slapstick and glitter for the children, fine dance and language for the artistes, religion for the old-timers, and tales of days gone by for the general bystander.

Using video and audio recordings, Prof. Baier's presentation will take the audience through a typical topeng perrformance, and discuss the place that topeng occupies as an art form and as a genre of living history in Balinese society.