Adapting to Desa, Kala, Patra (Place, Time, Situation): Balinese Dance in American Universities

Abstract

Incorporating Balinese dance into American college curricula provides artistic and cultural benefits for students. However, careful consideration is required to fit its instruction within institutional frameworks in ways that meet the needs of students and local communities alike. This article, which is based on a decade of ethnographic research, employs the Balinese philosophical desa, kala, patra (place, time, situation) concept as a framework to discuss how Balinese dance programs (and Asian dance programs in general) may fruitfully find homes in American academic contexts. American contexts for learning Balinese dance differ substantially from those in Bali, where dance is a part of the fabric of Balinese Hindu cultural, social, and religious life. The article introduces these points of difference, then discusses how Balinese dance might fruitfully be introduced into American collegiate settings, and how dance programs more broadly might determine how to introduce new varieties of global dance into their curricula.

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