Music and Dance Reviews : Balinese Dance Troupe Performs in Pasadena

Translations would have helped the unenlightened Westerner better appreciate the Dancers and Musicians of Bali presented by the Ambassador International Cultural Foundation at Pasadena Civic Auditorium on Saturday.

The long, closing dramatic stretch in particular left a non-Balinese speaker with little to take in other than the striking, colorful, opulent costumes of the characters.

But with at least one character courting or perhaps telling jokes to the audience, the experience must have been equally frustrating to the players who probably are used to more interaction or immediate response at home.

For all its sinuous mirror images unfolding in leisurely, expansive time, even the dance-drama “Legon Keraton” evoked similar moments of frustration. The story was related by an (amplified) offstage singer taking various roles with effective throaty, hoarse and nasal chantings, as well as battle sounds a la Victor Borge.

One got the impression that this was not arcane art intended to be remote from everyday people, as it turned out for many in the theater.

Still, there were many moments to savor in watching the dancers so skillfully execute the distinctive Balinese style--torsos twisted angularly, arms held in asymmetrical positions, fingers flexed outward, hands shimmering, eyes darting, bodies sinking from raised-toes to crouches close to the floor.

Westerners somewhat familiar with gamelan music got a few surprises. The brief opening instrumental piece revealed unexpected close-tone dissonances, call-and-response sequences and short, apparently discontinuous sections.