Javanese dance is the dances and art forms that were created and influenced by Javanese culture in Indonesia. Javanese dance movement is controlled, deliberate, and refined. Javanese art often displays finesse, and, at the same time, a serene composure which is elevated far above everything mundane. Javanese dance is usually associated with courtly, refined, and sophisticated culture of the Javanese kratons, such as the bedhaya and srimpi dance. However, in a wider sense, Javanese dance also includes the dances of Javanese commoners and villagers, such as ronggeng, tayub, reog, and jaran kepang.
Javanese Bedhaya sacred dance performance
A Javanese dancer is dancing accompanied by an ensemble music player in front of the king and his empress in the Kinnaras Court and six dancers are waiting their turn. The eighth-century bas-relief of Borobudur Temple, Central Java, Indonesia
Rama and Shinta in Ramayana Ballet performance near Prambanan temple complex
Golek Ayun-ayun, a Javanese court dance of Yogyakarta
The bedhaya is a sacred, ritualised Javanese dance of Java, Indonesia, associated with the royal palaces of Yogyakarta and Surakarta. Along with the srimpi, the bedhaya epitomized the elegant character of the royal court and became an important symbol of the ruler's power.
The sacred dance of Bedhaya Ketawang
The court of the Sultan of Yogyakarta, c. 1876
Bedhaya dance performance at the wedding of Hoesein Djajadiningrat and Partini in the palace of Prang Wedono (Mangkoe Negoro VII), the father of the bride, at Solo, Java, in January 1921
The Bedoyo dancers at the Susuhunan Palace Solo, Surakarta, between 1910 and 1930
