Saving the Saman Dance

The Saman Dance of the Gayo people, in danger of extinction, has gained its rightful place on the World Heritage List.

May 9, 2012

Fifteen men with long hair, clad in black, knelt close to each other on the stage of the Bali International Conventional Center at Nusa Dua Bali. Before them, hundreds of onlookers from 69 countries sat in silence, awaiting the next performance. Suddenly, the man at the center of the row on stage gave out a long howl, signaling the start of the dance. His call seemed to activate the previously motionless bodies to his left and right. They bent th

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