O.A.T. travelers joined dance students for a performance in their beautiful new costumes at Bali’s Sudi Dance School.
By Vu Nguyen, O.A.T. Regional General Manager, Southeast Asia
Sudi Dance School was founded in 1998 by Mrs. and Mr. Ketut Sudirawan, two professional Balinese dancers with great passion about the preservation of the Balinese culture, arts, and traditions.
Together with two volunteer dance teachers, the school provides lessons in traditional Balinese dance and gamelan musical instrument for local and neighboring villages’ children aged between 6 to 15 years.
The school operation is entirely funded by the founders—with only a very small donations required for the children’s attendance. Today, a total of 92 students attend the school in various classes throughout the week. The organization plays a very important role in preventing the disappearance of ancestral values, arts, and traditions through their tireless effort in encouraging the children’s participation.
Earlier this year, Grand Circle Foundation supported the Sudi Dance School with the purchase of new Balinese dance costumes for students.
This was a dream of the Sudirawans. They hoped for the village children to have traditional Balinese costumes to join the local Balinese dance competition in the region—or any other festival that takes place in the village. It’s a big honor for the local villagers if the students can perform with the new costumes.
Finally, Grand Circle Foundation has made their dream become true. The students, teachers, villagers, and student’s parents were thrilled. The kids are excited, and they can’t wait to perform their best moves at the competition and festivals.
In the meantime, Mr. Sudirawan has reported that the school has signed up for some Balinese dance competitions until next quarter due to high enthusiasm from the students. They keep practicing the dance, and with high energy and they hope to win the competition. The school chief, the parents, and the villagers can’t thank Grand Circle Foundation enough for this project, which encourages students to preserve the Balinese culture by practicing traditional dance in the modern era.
In May, O.A.T. travelers came to visit the Sudi Dance School and had a great time practicing their Balinese dance and having fun with kids.
Thank you to our generous travelers and Foundation supporters for making a dream come true for the students of Sudi Dance School.
Visit Sudi Dance School and try out some Balinese moves when you join O.A.T. for Java & Bali: Indonesia’s Mystical Islands.
