Mass Mask Drama Dance Performance A Ritual Art Stretch at Besakih Temple during the Covid-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The development of Balinese art is always the same as the Balinese people. The Covid-19 pandemic has eliminated various spaces for the arts, especially performing arts that are built communally in Balinese society. One type of performing art that has felt the most impact is the mask dance drama performance. Mask dance dramas are usually performed at Hindu religious ceremonies, but in the last 2 years, they are very rarely found. At the Tawur Tabuh Gentuh Ceremony and Karya Ida Bhatara Turun Kabeh at Besakih Temple, it seemed as if there was an extraordinary stretch of this ritual performance. Previously, it was rarely found due to activity restrictions, but suddenly it appeared by involving many dancers which could be categorized as mass. This study focuses on the study of the forms and meanings contained in the mass mask dance performances at Besakih Temple which were observed from April 4 to 6, 2022. This research is a qualitative type of field research with a phenomenological approach. The data collection methods used were participatory observation, interviews, literature studies, and documentation studies. The results of this study are: the form of mass mask dance performances at Besakih Temple resulted in a facial shift in several types of mask dance. the patih mask dance and the old mask which are usually performed by one dancer, are performed using 5 dancers. There is an arrangement of positions, with the structure and variety of dance movements that are still the same. In Sidhakarya Mask dance, there is a conceptual shift, which is usually this character is danced by one person into 5 people with the same distribution of characters. Meanwhile, the meaning obtained from the performance is a form of devotion to God and an effort to break down the blocked creativity.