Dancing is an important art form in Indonesia and is encouraged and practiced from earliest childhood.

The extensive repertoire of dance performances is based on ancient legends and traditions. Performances take place in village halls and village squares, as well as in some of the leading hotels.

Some of Bali’s most famous dances are the Legong, a slow, graceful dance of divine nymphs; the Baris, a racy, vociferous display of masculine warlike behavior, and the Jauk, captivating solo dance of a masked and richly costumed demon.

In the dramatic Kecak dance with 100 or more participants, only young men dressed in loincloth act as a wild monkey crowd, subjects of the Hindu monkey god Hanuman. Indonesian gamelan orchestras consist primarily of various xylophone-like percussion instruments, flutes and instruments that resemble the harp. These sounds can be heard in many Indonesian shops and restaurants and are part of every dance and shadow theater performance.