printed dresses

Kneeling, a condong (attendant) accompanies the two Legong dancers, conscious that Rudy Adnyana's camera is on her. Dressed in a golden costume, her ornate headdress includes fresh flowers. Legong dancers can be as young as four years old, and it is meant to be performed by girls who have not yet reached puberty. The choreography includes complicated footwork, expressive gestures, intricate finger movements and powerful facial expressions.

Balinese photographer Rudy Adnyana captures the graceful beauty of a Legong dancer as she incorporates the fan into her legendary choreography. Dressed in a golden costume, her ornate headdress includes fresh flowers. Legong dancers can be as young as four years old, and it is meant to be performed by two girls who have not yet reached puberty. The choreography includes complicated footwork, expressive gestures, intricate finger movements and powerful facial expressions.

Proud of his cultural heritage, Rudy Adnyana shares a powerful moment during the Barong dance, known as Ngurek. Male dancers recreate the part of the story where the soldiers stab themselves after the evil witch Rangda has put them under a spell. However Barong counters the spell by not allowing the men to be hurt by their keris (daggers). In this part of the dance, the men are in a trance, swaying back and forth, for it is believed spirits control their bodies so they do not get hurt during the performance. Women hold out smoldering chisels, believed to support the trance.

Dressed in rich ornamentation, a woman smiles as she performs the Janger dance. She seems to dance exclusively for Rudy Adnyana as he expertly focuses his lens on her, blurring the presence of the admiring audience for this laminated color photograph. The Janger became popular in the 1920', when it became allowed for young men and women to dance together. Twelve females sit together, swaying and singing sweetly, while a corresponding number of men execute the aggressive kecak chants and movements of the dance. Eventually, the individuals stand up and perform creative routines, the men generally taking on clownish roles while the women present more provocative choreographies.